World News

South Korea's Moon thanks Trump for talks with North

By Susan McFarland   |   Jan. 10, 2018 at 12:59 PM
President of South Korea Moon Jae-in and President Donald Trump spoke during a phone call Wednesday. File Photo by Molly Riley/UPI

Jan. 10 (UPI) -- In a telephone call with the White House on Wednesday, South Korea President Moon Jae-in thanked President Donald Trump for enabling talks between Seoul and Pyongyang.

During the call, Moon briefed Trump on Tuesday's discussions between North and South Korea and thanked Trump for his influential leadership in making the talks possible.

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The two leaders emphasized the importance of continuing the "maximum pressure campaign" against North Korea.

"President Trump expressed his openness to holding talks between the United States and North Korea at the appropriate time, under the right circumstances," the White House said in a statement.

Trump also told Moon that Vice President Mike Pence would lead the U.S. Presidential Delegation to the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

North Korea's plan to send its national team to the Winter Games is triggering speculation in the South that Pyongyang could send top officials, including Kim Jong Un's sister Kim Yo Jong.

Tuesday's call between South and North Korea declared that both sides would cooperate to make the Winter Olympics a success, during the first inter-Korean high-level meeting in more than two years.