Military Drills Delayed

[Anchor Lead]

The thaw in relations with the North comes as the presidents of South Korea and the United States agreed in a phone call Thursday night not to hold their annual joint military exercises during the Winter Olympic Games. President Trump also said that he fully supports President Moon's efforts to restore dialogue with Pyongyang.

[Pkg]

President Moon Jae-in and his U.S. counterpart, Donald Trump, have spoken on the phone for the first time since North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's New Year address. Speaking on the phone for about 30 minutes, the two heads of state agreed to not hold the annual military exercises during the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang. Instead, the militaries of the two nations will focus on ensuring the safety and success of the Olympics. President Moon said that as long as Pyongyang refrains from provocations, the postponement of the joint military exercises will contribute greatly to a peaceful and successful Olympic Games. President Trump responded by saying that he is sure there will be no military drills during the Games. President Moon promised to cooperate closely with Washington while pushing for dialogue with Pyongyang, and stressed that inter-Korean dialogue will also help promote dialogue between Pyongyang and Washington in order to solve the nuclear crisis. The U.S. president responded by saying that the United States supports President Moon one hundred percent and wishes the two Koreas will produce good results through inter-Korean dialogue. President Trump reiterated his intention to send his family and a high-ranking delegation to the PyeongChang Olympics.