The statement by Maulvi Faqir Mohammad is the first time a named Taleban commander has confirmed that the group is negotiating with the Pakistani government. But it is unclear whether he speaks for entirety of the network, which is believed to have splintered into different factions over the last year.

Mohammad, said to be the deputy chief of the Pakistani Taleban, said his men had held “peace talks with relevant government officials.”

“They are progressing well, and we may soon sign a formal peace agreement with the government,” he said.

Government officials were not available for comment. They have previously denied earlier reports of talks. Despite pushing for peace talks to end a related insurgency in Afghanistan, Washington is unlikely to support similar efforts to strike a deal in Pakistan.

US forces and their NATO and Afghan allies regularly come under attack from Afghan militants and Al-Qaeda operatives, who live alongside Pakistani Taleban militants in the border region. Previous peace deals there didn’t last long, and gave militants time to rest and regroup.

Mohammad’s main area of strength is the Bajour tribal region, where the army claims to have decimated militant networks in a series of recent operations. He said any deal in Bajour could be “role model” for the rest of the border region.

The Pakistani Taleban have been behind much of the violence tearing apart Pakistan over the last 4 1/2 years. At least 35,000 people have been killed in guerrilla attacks and army offensives. Last month, anonymous militants and intelligence officials said exploratory peace talks were under way between the two sides. The government and the army denied any such talks after those reports were published, as did a spokesman for the Taleban.

The Taleban say they want to oust the US-backed government and install a hard-line regime. They also have international ambitions and trained the Pakistani-American who tried to detonate a car bomb in New York City’s Times Square in 2010.

Yet many commanders grouped under its name are motivated by building criminal fiefdoms at a local level. Smuggling, drugs and kidnaps-for-ramsom are very lucrative business in the lawless, tribally administered region.

Despite the Taleban’s violence, there is political and public support for a peace deal with the group.

In September, the  government announced it was prepared to “give peace a chance” with militants, pandering to right-wing parties and their supporters.