ARIRANG NEWS 16:00 Koreas hold military talks to ease tensions: sources

ARIRANG NEWS 16:00 Hello and welcome to Arirang News. It′s Wednesday, October 15th here in Korea. Live from Seoul, I′m Laah Hyun-kyung. Title: Koreas hold military talks to ease tensions: sources We begin at the truce village of Panmunjom this afternoon... where high-level military talks between the two Koreas are reportedly taking place. The South Korean government keeps saying it has nothing to confirm at this point,… but sources say the two are discussing ways to ease cross-border tensions. Hwang Sung-hee has our top story. The two Koreas are reportedly holding a round of military talks behind closed doors on this Wednesday. Citing senior government officials and lawmakers, local media outlets are reporting that a meeting between general-level officers is underway at the truce village of Panmunjom in an effort to ease military tensions at the border. South Korea′s unification ministry declined to confirm the reports. Last week, South and North Korean patrol boats exchanged fire after a North Korean vessel crossed the de facto maritime border in the West Sea. Three days later, the two Koreas exchanged gunfire across their shared border after the North fired at South Korean balloons carrying anti-Pyongyang leaflets. Up for discussion in today′s talks are the recent clashes and ways to prevent them moving forward. A government source said the meeting was suggested by Pyongyang following last week′s incident in the West Sea. The unification ministry also declined to comment on whether it had proposed a date to North Korea for their planned high-level talks. The two sides earlier agreed to hold the meeting sometime in late October or early November. In a column on Wednesday, North Korea′s state-run Rodong Shinmun newspaper called on South Korea to halt all military hostilities to create a mood for improving cross-border ties. The newspaper said banning anti-Pyongyang leaflets would be a first step,... something the South Korean government has repeatedly said it will not do. Hwang Sung-hee, Arirang News. Title: Chinese President Xi says six-party talks are best way to denuclearize N. Korea South Korea′s ruling party leader Kim Moo-sung sits down with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. Kim says... the Chinese leader reaffirmed his stance that Pyongyang′s nuclear ambitions are unacceptable. Shin Se-min has the details. Chinese President Xi Jinping wants to revive the long-stalled six-party talks as soon as possible. In a meeting with the leader of South Korea′s ruling Saenuri Party, Kim Moo-sung in Beijing on Tuesday,... President Xi said that while the talks haven′t been held for six years,... they STILL represent the "optimum" process to persuade North Korea to GIVE UP its nuclear ambitions. The talks, that involve the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, have been stalled since late 2008 when Pyongyang walked away from the negotiating table. "President Xi said the six-party talks could p