The Indonesian government has given separatist rebels fighting in the northern province of Aceh until December to drop demands for independence and resume talks.

The government fell short of declaring a state of emergency in the province, as some had predicted, but said if the rebels failed to respond, strong security measures would be taken against them.

We urge them to think wisely in settling this Aceh problem... the government is serious in offering this dialogue

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono Indonesia Security Minister

But a spokesman for the separatists told the BBC that talks would only be possible if all issues, presumably including independence, were on the table.

The BBC's Jakarta correspondent, Richard Galpin, says the two sides' public pronouncements suggest there is little reason to be optimistic a solution is any nearer.

The long-running rebellion in the energy-rich province is one of the most serious problems faced by the Indonesian government.

The government says it believes the unity of the whole nation is threatened by the violence, which has claimed at least 10,000 lives since it first erupted in the mid-1970s.

Indonesian Security Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he hoped the rebels would agree to discuss an offer of autonomy by the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which ends on 7 December this year.

Government fears

Mr Yudhoyono said the authorities would continue dialogue with the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) "on condition that GAM recognises the law on special autonomy for Aceh and halts the armed conflict".

"We urge them to think wisely in settling this Aceh problem... the government is serious in offering this dialogue," he added.

But the BBC's Jakarta correspondent, Richard Galpin, says that at least 700 people are reported to have been killed so far this year in the continuing fighting.

But our correspondent says it is not just the bloodshed which is of grave concern to the government.

It believes the demand for independence by rebels of the Free Aceh Movement poses a threat to the unity of the entire nation by encouraging separatist movements in other provinces such as West Papua.

Martial law

There is also the danger posed to the massive oil and gas fields in Aceh run by the American company Exxon Mobil.

Military action will continue until the rebels respond

But so far all efforts to resolve the conflict have failed.

Former President Suharto imposed martial law in the province throughout the 1990s but that served only to heighten the resentment of the local population towards the government and military.

Tough stance

Attempts to reach a negotiated settlement over the past two years have also made little headway and the rebels have refused to accept a special autonomy package.

Since then, President Megawati Sukarnoputri has taken a tougher stance.

The Free Aceh Movement has been declared a terrorist organisation and the security forces have been given a free hand to crush it.