now members of the u.n. security council are struggling to find common ground on syria. foreign ministers from the five permanent members are trying to agree on a resolution demanding syria eliminate its chemical weapons. they discussed how monitors from the organization would inspect and verify syria's stockpile. delegates from the u.s., britain and france want a resolution allowing for military action if the syrians fail to comply with the security council's demands. over the past week, u.s. secretary of state john kerry has met separately with all of his counterparts but had a hard time convincing russian foreign minister sergei lavrov. they have served as allies to assad and lavrov wants to avoid any threat of military strike.

u.n. weapons inspectors have returned to syria to resume their work. on their last trip, they concluded that the nerve agent sarin was used in attack last month in a suburb of damascus. the inspectors are looking in to more allegations about the use of chemical weapons. they have received reports that such weapons were used at least ten times. president bashar al-assad admitted earlier this week that his regime has built up a huge stockpile but they are looking in to charges from russian leaders that opposition fighters were behind some attacks. secretary of state john kerry has signed an agreement that regulates the global trade in conventional weapons. the u.n. arms trade treaty sets standards for the cross-border movement of firearms, tanks and even attack helicopters. >> anytime we work cooperatively to address the illicit trade in conventional weapons, we make the world a safer place.

>> delegates to the u.n. general assembly adopted the treaty in april. those in favor hope it will help to stop the trade of weapons used in human rights abuses, organized crime and terrorism. the u.s. exports more weapons than any other country. but some americans fear the treaty could lead to restrictions on their right to bear arms. lawmakers in congress haven't approved the treaty and some are lining up to oppose it. the treaty will take effect when 50 countries ratified it. only four approved it so far. some senior diplomats are working on a plan to restart talks on north korea's nuclear program. north korean foreign minister and former u.s. special representative for north korean policy steven bosworth met in berl berlin. but the details of the meeting have been kept secret.

he is believed to have asked for a resumption of the six-party talks. negotiators haven't met since 2008. north korean leaders say they are open to sitting down again but don't want their counterparts to place conditions on them. u.s. officials say north koreans mst take concrete steps toward denuclearization before negotiations resume. negotiate sors from china chair the talks and they've been pressing americans to reconsider their position. but the americans aren't convinced. they suspect the north koreans have restarted an experimental nuclear reactor, which could be used to produce weapons grade plutonium. and they believe authorities in the north conducted an engine last month for a new type of ballistic missile. now our specialist for north korean affairs. you heard the overtures the north koreans are making.

what do you think they're trying to do? >> reporter: they said we are ready to enter the six-party talks without preconditions. using the rhetorical wording without any preconditions is meaningless unless north korea shows a clear commitment to abandon its nuclear arms through concrete actions. pyongyang's changed its chance from nonnegotiable to negotiable just implies they are trying to signal their willingness for talks. pyongyang appears to insist the chinese stand on the sick-party talk to staf off diplomatic isolation after the missile launch and a nuclear test. pyongyang was trying to make a fool of beijing as an opportunity to get the six-party talks moving again. however, the international community demands pyongyang take concrete steps to implement a commitment it made on september

19, 2005. china can also come through the concrete steps by pyongyang for denuclearization. verifiable actions by the north could give justification for getting back to the negotiating table. >> all right. and north koreans say they want to revive negotiations. but the u.s. believes they may have have started an experime experimental nuclear reactor. how do you resolve the two actions there? >> pyongyang might be tempted to deactivate the facilities to pressure washington and seoul to agree to resume the talks on its terms to gain more concessions. they want international community to see their premeditated visible nuclear activities. the possibility of a restarted nuclear complex cannot be ruled

out, considering last minute brinkmanship to heighten tensions on the korean peninsula. the forced nuclear test card may not bf used this time because of chinese strong pressures and participating international sanctions after the third testing in february. recently, china published a prohibited exported items to north korea, which include the potential dom opponents for nuclear facilities, biological arm es and rockets. the action came ahead of the united nations' annual general assembly meeting that opened on tuesday in new york. the international community has to make judgment about north korean regime based on actions, not words. >> i see. so what should we expect next? >> reporter: china collaborations among washington, tokyo, seoul, are critical to pressure pyongyang ahead of propaganda maneuvers. beijing is in the talks to deal

with the korean issue is not enough. spence fiing pressure and persuasion on the north using its influences is essential. interestingly, north korea rises up as a nation of refshs to solve the iranian nuclear issue. which creates a contrasting effect between the two nuclear pursuing countries. unlike the iranian president, north korea is flexible regarding their program. kim jong-un is not ready for the agreed upon commitments toward the international community. they hope to be recognized as a defacto nuclear weapon state by the united states. the national security adviser told reporters that north korea developed nuclear arms and conducted tests. simply pyongyang demonstrated through actions that it has made to give up its nuclear weapons program. members of the sixth-party

process are more than justified in asking north korea to demonstrate its seriousness about denuclearization. the international community appreciates china's earth to resume multilateral talks. lastly, my observation is that the time for the new six-party talks is not right. and that international community will never recognize north korea as a nuclear weapons state. >> all right, thank you very much there, dr. kim. >> a people tested by politics and industry. inno va tors who captured audiences everywhere. these are the faces of south korea. nhk world updates you on what's happening across the peninsula wednesday and thursday. dia paen's prime minister has told an audience that japanese officials should review

how they view their pacifist constitution. abe gave a hypothetical example where forces see another country get attacked during peacekeeping operations. l would not be able to protect u.s. warships. >> japan should not be the wiea link in the region. in the regional and global security framework where the u.s. plays a leading role. >> abe appeared to compare military expenditures in japan and china. he said an immediate neighbor has increased its military expenditures by more than 10% annually for more than 20 years. >> my government has increased

its defense budget only by 0.8%. so call me if you want a right wing middle. >> abe dismissed claims that japan is leaning to the right. he said he's determined to make japan what he called a proactive contributor to peace. in a speech at the new york stock exchange, abe promoted his economic policy called abenomics. >> by my abenomics. >> he said that if japan fulfills its potential the economy will be revived. abe said he'll implement drastic tax cuts to encourage investment as soon as he gets back to japan. >> translator: no action, no growth. action is the key to my growth

plan. >> he also commented on the nuclear accident in fukushima, saying japan would never abandon its technology for nuclear safety. he said japan is responsible for overcoming the nuclear crisis and making contributions to the world. this would be done by using the world's best safety technology. u.s. government finances are under threat again. time is running out to pass next year's budget and the government has to extend the country's borrowing limit or risk defaulting on its debt. the new u.s. fiscal year starts next month, and the government is facing a shutdown if congress doesn't pass the budget soon. the republican-controlled house of representatives has erected a road block. republicans agreed to pass the budget but only if the government postpones the medical insurance reform that president barack obama wants. the democrat controlled senate started intense discussions on

the budget on wednesday, but they have separated the issue of health insurance. senators hope to pass a provisional budget that will allow the government to spend for a month and a half, then there's the debt ceiling. the treasury department has warned that unless the debt limit is raised by october 17th, the government will run out of money to pay its bills. congressional budget office officials predict the u.s. could default on its debt by the end of october, if the limit is not raised. now the french government has brought in an austerity budget for the new fiscal year. french finance minister pierre moscovici is seeking support for the draft budget. he says it focuses on cost reductions at government agencies rather than raising taxes. the french government is aiming to reduce its deficit to 3.6% of annual output. the deficit is currently at 4.1%. the 2014 budget plan includes a tax increase on the wealthy and

a cut in family allowances. the government is hoping to achieve the eu deficit target of 3%. the budget is scheduled for discussion in parliament starting next month. some opposition members say the government is not telling the truth about tax increases. japanese housing equipment maker liksil has agreed to buy grohe, a german producer of bathroom fixtures. the deal is worth about $3.5 billion. lixil looks to expand in europe. sources familiar with the deal say lixil recently agreed to buy most of the shares in the german firm from an investment fund. the amount includes grohe's debts. lixil was in merger talks jointly with the development bank of japan. grohe makes and sells high-end kitchen and bathroom equipment. the japanese maker is boosting efforts to expand overseas as the japanese market is diminishing.

in august lixil bought out u.s. day let maker american standard for about $530 million. some people in china are fighting to preserve the ancient cultu culture. the manchu reigned for hundreds of years and now they're beginning a revival. >> translator: this word means hope. learning an endangered language. students young and old trying to pick up their native tongue. they are chinese citizens, but this isn't chinese. this is manchu, and its characters originated from the mongolian alphabet. for the last five years, volunteers have been teaching this class once a week in an effort to keep their language

and culture alive. >> translator: since i started studying the manchu language, i became more aware of my origin. i want to preserve our own language. >> reporter: there are about 10 million manchu people living across china. 600,000 live here in shenyang, a city in the northeast, a region once known as manchuria, but a tour around the city indicates virtually no sign of manchu culture. less than 100 manchus can speak their mother tongue now. but some are trying to preserve their ethnic customs. bai yufang is a writer who lives in shanghai.

almost every week she, along with fellow manchus and other friends, put on traditional dresses and practice traditional dancing. >> translator: i truly enjoy dancing. the traditional dress lifts my spirit. >> reporter: until recently many manchu people tried to hide their ethnicity, fearing they'd be persecuted by china's largest ethnic group, the han chinese, but bai says attitudes are changing. >> translator: i think the society is becoming tolerant of ethnic minorities' cultures. china has pursued material wealth but now the people want spiritual richness. >> reporter: other manchus are rediscovering their culture by visiting historical grounds. 50 manchu men and women from across china joined this tour of

jilin province, an area where manchu people founded a country called bohai more than 1,000 years ago. they then head for champai mountain, where the manchu people are believed to have originated from. the group honored their ancestors in a traditional ceremony part of which was performed by a manchu shaman. >> translator: i'm moved. i'm about to cry. >> translator: i want to strengthen the unity of the manchu and to keep our culture and tradition. >> reporter: so whether on a mountain or in a classroom a revival of manchu culture in china is under way.

the ethnic group of the country's last great dynasty are determined not to let their language, culture and traditions die. ryuta okatani, nhk world, shanghai. ♪ populous, prosperous, pushing ahead. china's rise, routed wealth, power and problems, an income gap divides its people, pollution threatens their health and disputed seas strain relations with its neighbors. find out about the challenges china faces on "newsline." >> we've been seeing drizzles in tokyo, it's starting to clear up. >> a severe tropical storm is moving away from the country. although we're expecting some high waves across the pacific coast, across the southern islands of japan throughout the

day, probably about seven meters high. the conditions are looking up, as i mentioned. and then we expect a nice quick sunny weather into much of japan. could be a little chilly side tomorrow more heavy rain for the western part of philippines. we have a tropical depression over south tennessee which could become a tropical storm. and this is enhancing the southwest monsoon, dumping drenching rain for the western parts of the philippines, as well as the eastern part of the indochina peninsula for the next several days. now across the americas, the coldest air of the season invading from the north, creating significant snowfall for the northern rockies. we're dependent expecting about

60 sent mecentimeters in the highest elevations. strong winds and heavy snow could cause low visibility and making for quite dangerous situation. traveling is going to be hazardous. ahead of the system we have severe weather because this is the area where cold air meets up with warmer air from the south. there's a possibility of severe thunderstorms from north dakota down towards wyoming into the next several hours or so. now yet again rain for the florida peninsula, the ground is already very well saturated. the ground cannot take any more rainfall. so very serious conditions will continue into the weekend. now temperatures are going to be in the low to mid 20s across the east. 22 in toronto, 24 degrees in washington, d.c. but if you look at the west, they're usually warmer this time of year.

24 kw 24 degrees, but that could go down into the teens by friday. over atlantic and the other is over eastern parts of europe. and both of them are packing cold air. we've seen ongoing heavy rain and thunderstorms for the east. the conditions are gradually looking up, compared to what we have been seeing over the past several dpaps wet weather will continue for western russia, as well as parts of the scandinavia, though, for the next few days. and a risk of wet and windy conditions through germany down towards the black sea region. and this low pressure system is expected to move into the iberian peninsula as we head into friday. short time heavy rain thunderstorms and gusty winds are possible and temperatures will be going down. no down to 19 degrees on saturday.

this place, october 5 is taking place. cloudy conditions into sunday. and nearly 20 degrees for the next three days. enjoy the fest call. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecass. here's your extended forecast.t. here's your extended forecast.. here's your extended forecast. here's your extended forecasi. here's your extended forecasv. here's your extended forecasal. here's your extended forecast.

>> that's all for now. thanks for joining us.

tavis: good evening. from los angeles, i am tavis smiley. tonight the first of two conversations with finger linda ronstadt. -- with finger linda ronstadt.

her crystal invoice is eminently crystalline voice is silenced due to parkinson's. her book is titled "simple dreams." we are glad you joined us. a conversation with linda ronstadt is coming up. ♪ ♪ >> and by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. ♪hank you.

tavis: before she retired from in 2000 nine, linda ronstadt collaborated with numerous artists including dolly parton, paul simon, and so many more. she moved from libretto to the mexican songs she learned from her mother and father. she has written a wonderful memoir called "simple dreams." here is a simple reminder of her beautiful voice. desperado, why don't you come to your senses ♪ for soe been out riding

♪ng you're a hard one ♪ ♪ i know that you got your ♪asons >> still sound good? >> i remember a secondhand store. tavis: i am talking about your voice am a and you are talking about your blouse. does it still sound good to you? >> i love that song. tavis: does it still sound good to you? >> where did i get that vibe rob lowe? it sound like a billy goat. -- that by brought so -- that

vibrato? it felt like a billy goat. tavis: you were here last time. i wanted to remind you of something you said last time you were on this row graham -- this row graham, and i quoted you around the world about this. program, and i quoted you around the world about this. you said part of the problem in this country is either pollution and you'reution, right. there is so much noise we have to break through these days. >> it's depressing. everywhere you go there is a soundtrack. you cannot really hear it. we work so hard on those records andake them sound good, every single year since they invented sound recording, it gets better.