The Pakistani military and the Taliban on Tuesday denied reports of peace talks and a ceasefire between the two sides, dpa reported.
The reports first appeared in international media Monday, referencing purported peace talks between the government and insurgent Taliban, noting a statement attributed to a Taliban commander associated with Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
In the reports, the Taliban source sought anonymity, but claimed Tuesday that a ceasefire with the Taliban had been observed since October.
Suicide attacks have been on the decrease for almost two months, and lessening in scope, with militants focusing on selected targets, mainly officers and tribal elders who took part in operations against them.
But it had not been clear if this shift was due to the increasing capacity of security forces or a clandestine agreement.
A military spokesperson on Tuesday said that the army was not undertaking any kind of negotiations with the TTP or its affiliated militant groups.
"Such reports are concocted, baseless and unfounded," he said. "Any contemplated negotiation/reconciliation process with militant groups has to be done by the government," the spokesperson said.
Top TTP spokesman Ihasnullah Ihsan also denied the reports Tuesday.
But there was confusion among the officials. Interior Minister Rehman Malik said that his government would welcome the ceasefire if it was real.