(Corrects figure in paragraph 19 of Feb 16 story to 15 from 50)
* Afghan official says more Taliban want negotiated peace
* But says settlement hampered by U.N. sanctions blacklist
By Mohammed Abbas
LONDON, Feb 16 (Reuters) - The Taliban are increasingly willing to make peace with the Afghan government, but a United Nations blacklist of Taliban members is proving an obstacle to progress, a senior Afghan official said on Wednesday.
The U.N. Security Council Taliban-al Qaeda sanctions committee, which was established in 1999 by resolution 1267, can impose restrictions such as a travel ban and asset freeze.
There is a growing acceptance among both Afghan officials and Western forces in the country that a political settlement with Taliban insurgents will be necessary to end the increasingly violent conflict, now in its tenth year.
"I can certainly with confidence say that we observe increasing willingness on the Taliban side for reconciliation," Shaida Abdali, deputy national security adviser and special assistant to Afghan President Hamid Karzai, told reporters.
"We would like to see some practical steps, some realistic steps with regards to 1267, in order to use it as ... a tool for confidence building to show to the Taliban that we are serious about reconciliation. When you are reconciled, you are accepted as one of us, not banned from travel and so on," he added.
He said Afghanistan was stepping up reconciliation efforts, but the Taliban "keep asking" for removal from the U.N. blacklist, which he described as an "obstacle".
Abdali criticised the U.N. committee overseeing the list, and called for more de-listing.
Some Security Council countries have welcomed some de-listing, but diplomats say Russia, which also sits on the council, is cautious and is concerned about Islamic fundamentalism and Taliban-linked drug trafficking.
"We have only been able to de-list 15 names in the last six years. We're not happy with the bureaucracy that exists ... the reluctance of certain members of the Security Council to de-listing," Abdali told the London news conference.
Some of those de-listed were only removed from the list because they had died.
Violence in Afghanistan is at its worst since U.S.-backed Afghan forces overthrew the Taliban in late 2001 with casualties on all sides at record levels and militant attacks increasing in number and spreading to almost every part of the country.
There are some 150,000 mostly American foreign troops in the country, and some are set to be withdrawn this year as part of a plan to eventually hand responsibility for security in the country to Afghans in 2014. (Editing by Philippa Fletcher)
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