South Korea proposes military talks to North Korea

국방부 北에 군사회담 제안na Let's kick things off at the defense ministry,... a big day there... The South Korean government has officially proposed holding military talks with North Korea. This is part of a follow up to President Moon Jae-in's offer to stop all acts of hostility on the inter-Korean border. We connect with our Kim Hyun-bin,... who is at the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul. Hyun-bin,... North Korea has a track record of not responding to these kind of offers,... but after years of a hardline approach... this is quite a big step for the new administration in Seoul... That's right, Mark. South Korea's Vice Defense Minister Suh Choo-suk proposed inter-Korean military talks this morning... as a way to reduce tensions along the heavily-fortified border. Let's take a look at what he had to say. "The Ministry of National Defense proposes inter-Korean military talks at Panmunjom on July 21st at the North Korean building of Tongilgak. The talks will be aimed at reducing military tensions along the border and halting all hostilities." The proposal is a follow up to President Moon Jae-in's speech earlier this month in Berlin,... in which he laid out his vision for bringing peace to the peninsula. The proposal aims to mutually halt acts of hostility along the border... as of July 27... which is the 64th anniversary of the Armistice Treaty that ended the three-year Korean War in a ceasefire in 1953. The ministry requested Pyongyang respond to its offer through the newly-restored western border military hotline. If held, the meeting would mark the first military dialogue between the two countries in almost three years. Experts believe Seoul could agree to power down propaganda loudspeakers installed along the border... and end its anti-North Korean regime leaflet drops. On the North Korean side,... they are likely to demand a halt to the joint military drills between Seoul and Washington for the talks to resume. Most watchers say there's a good chance North Korea will agree to hold the talks,... but it may propose another date.... not July 21st as the South suggested For now though,... the ball is in North Korea's court... and we just have to wait and see. That's all I have for now. Back to you.