INTERVIEW-Swiss ready to go extra mile for peace

By Emma Thomasson

ZURICH, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Switzerland is prepared to talk to groups others may shun, like Islamists and Ugandan rebels, as it plays on its neutrality to develop a more active role in international peace mediation, a senior official said.

Switzerland has been quietly building up its involvement as a conflict mediator in recent years including in Sudan, Colombia, Sri Lanka and Nepal, but those efforts came under the spotlight recently when the foreign minister was quoted as condoning dialogue with al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. Thomas Greminger, who heads up the foreign ministry department responsible for mediation, said in an interview that Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey's remarks were taken out of context and Switzerland ruled out speaking to bin Laden.

But he said Switzerland was more prepared than most to venture into "grey areas" to promote peace and stability.

"Switzerland tries to explore how far can you go and where can you still get something out of a dialogue and advance a peace process by seeking dialogue with partners where normally you would not be so comfortable," he told Reuters on Friday.

The country's involvement in peace talks with Uganda's Lord's Resistance Army -- indicted for war crimes by the International Criminal Court -- recently stoked controversy, as have efforts to engage with Islamic social charities.

"On Islamist groups ... frankly speaking the international community doesn't know much about them. Many just feel terribly uncomfortable in dealing with them." he said.

"It is very important that we do not have this self-fulfilling prophecy of a clash of civilisations. This necessitates dialogue, better understanding, building trust."