President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinjo Abe have agreed to apply maximum pressure and sanctions on North Korea to induce the regime to abandon its nuclear and missile programs. 

The two leaders exchanged opinions on how to deal with North Korea's provocations during a phone conversation on Monday afternoon. 

Presidential spokesman Park Soo-hyun said during the 23-minute call, the two leaders had an in-depth discussion on how to cooperate to deal with Pyongyang's continued threats.

Moon was quoted as saying that the North's nuclear and missile issues should be resolved peacefully through diplomatic means, and that Seoul, Washington and Tokyo need to work together closely to discuss strategic methods to bring Pyongyang back to the negotiating table.

In turn, Abe said it is natural that the issues be ultimately resolved through dialogue, but for now, it is necessary to apply pressure on the North so that it responds to dialogue. 

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