MANILA: The head of the Philippine communist insurgent movement said Saturday it was still possible to revive stalled peace talks with the government.

However Jose Maria Sison, founder of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) insisted that the government must release captured guerrillas before the talks could be re-started.

In a statement issued from his self-exile in the Netherlands, Sison said that "it is still possible to resume the formal talks," and the two sides could meet in Olso to agree on removing impediments.

He said the National Democratic Front (NDF), the political wing of the CPP had made the proposal through the Norwegian government, which had been hosting the peace effort.

But in order to revive the talks, Sison called for the release of captured guerrillas and the dropping of charges against other CPP leaders who he said were "consultants" to the peace talks.

He did not give a figure for the number of people who should be released.

Talks were originally scheduled to resume in the Netherlands on August 28 but earlier this month, the NDF said this could not proceed until the government released 14 senior CPP leaders.

The government's chief peace negotiator said these demands amounted to the NDF's virtually abandoning the talks and suggested the negotiations were all but over.

Peace talks with the CPP and its 5,000-strong armed wing the New People's Army (NPA) have been suspended since 2005 after the government refused to ask the EU and the United States to remove them from their foreign terrorist watchlist.

In July, the rebel group, which has been waging a 40-year Maoist campaign to seize power, said it was open to resuming peace talks with the government.