SEOUL, March 1 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his US counterpart Donald Trump held a telephone conversation Thursday night over possible preliminary talks between the United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Yonhap news agency reported.

US President Donald Trump (L) and South Korean President Moon Jae-in attend a press conference at the presidential residence in Seoul, South Korea, Nov. 7, 2017. Donald Trump and Moon Jae-in on Tuesday agreed to peacefully resolve issues on the Korean Peninsula and to swiftly push negotiations for a fair free trade deal between the two countries. (Photo: Xinhua)

The phone talks between Moon and Trump, the first in about a month, was held at around 10 p.m. local time (1300 GMT), Yoon Young-chan, senior press secretary for the South Korean president, was quoted as saying.

Moon explained to Trump that the DPRK had showed its willingness to talk with the United States, persuading the US president to get into an exploratory dialogue with Pyongyang to figure out what Pyongyang intends to do while keeping a stance of maximum pressure on the country.