British Prime Minister David Cameron has said that Afghanistan’s Taliban – currently fighting against British troops and other international coalition forces – could play a future role in the government of the country.

Western leaders have previously said they are negotiating with the Taliban in an attempt to forge a peace agreement, but Cameron’s statement is the most direct appeal yet to the group by a head of government.

“To the Taliban, my message is very clear. Stop bombing, stop killing, stop fighting, put down your weapons, join the political process and you can join the future of this country,” he said.

Cameron compared the situation in Afghanistan to the situation in Northern Ireland, where a decades-long sectarian conflict was ended by a peace agreement in 1998 that sees Irish republicans opposed to British rule in the province sharing power with unionists loyal to the UK.

“I’ve seen it in my own country, in Northern Ireland, where people who were involved in trying to kill, maim, and bomb civilians, police officers, army personnel, and even politicians, have actually become politicians themselves, involved in the governance of the country. It can happen,” Cameron said.

Reconciliation with the Taliban must be accomplished to secure Afghanistan’s long-term peace and security, but the Taliban must first lay down its arms and stop fighting, he said.

With US and UK forces set to withdraw by the end of 2014, the need to bring the Taliban into a peace agreement will become more pressing.

In June, while announcing his plan to withdraw tens of thousands of American troops over the next year, US President Barack Obama said a political settlement in Afghanistan would involve the Taliban. But he did not explicitly discuss them sharing power officially in government.

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