Anchor: President Moon Jae-in has welcomed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's suggestion of sending a team to the upcoming Olympic Winter Games in Pyeongchang. Following up on the president's remark, Seoul's unification minister proposed holding a high-level inter-Korean dialogue next Tuesday. 
Alannah Hill has more. 

Report: President Moon Jae-in has welcomed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's suggestion of possibly sending a team to the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games and holding inter-Korean talks on the matter.

Chairing his first Cabinet meeting of the year on Tuesday, Moon said Kim appears to have responded positively to Seoul’s offer to make the Winter Games a key opportunity to improve South-North ties and promote peace.
 
Moon ordered the unification and culture ministries to swiftly come up with follow-up measures to restore inter-Korean dialogue and realize North Korea’s participation in the games while instructing the Foreign Ministry to work closely with allies and the international community to pursue improved South-North ties and a resolution to North Korea’s nuclear issue at the same time.

In his speech, Kim warned that he has a nuclear button on his desk ready for use, but also said he was "open to dialogue" with Seoul and may send a North Korean delegation to the PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games as part of efforts to lower military tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

In a news briefing following the president's remarks, Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon proposed that the two Koreas hold a high-level dialogue at the truce village of Panmunjom next Tuesday. 

If the talks take place, it would be the first time that the two sides hold high-level talks since December 2015. 

The Institute for National Security Strategy under South Korea's spy agency has predicted that the North may demand Seoul lift economic sanctions in return for its participation in the PyeongChang Olympics.

The institute said that it is rare that Kim mentioned the Winter Olympics in his speech, which hints at Pyongyang's assessment that the games are an opportunity to improve inter-Korean relations.

The institute, however, said that the North may consider its dialogue offer and participation in the games as an act of helping the South, and may demand rewards such as a resumption of inter-Korean economic cooperation and humanitarian aid to the North.
Alannah Hill, KBS World Radio News.