SEOUL, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Friday that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s participation in the Winter Olympics helped ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula and improve inter-Korean relations.
Moon made the remarks during his dinner meeting with Ivanka Trump who came here earlier in the day to lead a U.S. delegation to attend the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics in South Korea's eastern county of PyeongChang, according to a pool report by the Blue House.
Ivanka, the daughter of U.S. President Donald Trump and also a White House advisor, allegedly planned to cheer on U.S. athletes during her four-day visit, and attend the Olympic closing ceremony scheduled for Sunday.
"North Korea (DPRK)'s Olympic participation leads to active inter-Korean dialogues, which made a big contribution to easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula and enhancing inter-Korean relations," Moon said.
During the senior-level inter-Korean dialogue in January, the DPRK agreed to send its athletes and cheerleaders to the PyeongChang Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. Seoul and Pyongyang also agreed to hold working-level talks next week to discuss the DPRK's participation in the Winter Paralympics.
Moon expressed his gratitude to U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, who attended the opening ceremony on Feb. 9, and Ivanka who came here to attend the closing ceremony.
Ivanka said the United States reaffirmed its bonds of friendship, cooperation and partnership between the two allies.
The United States also reaffirmed its commitment to the maximum pressure campaign to ensure that the Korean Peninsula is denuclearized, said Ivanka.
Among the U.S. delegates attending the dinner at the Blue House were White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, U.S. Senator James Risch, and Allison Hooker, a National Security Council official who specializes in the Korean Peninsula affairs.
From the South Korean side, the presidential chief of staff, the top national security advisor for President Moon, the top presidential policy advisor, and the foreign minister attended the dinner meeting.
Before the dinner meeting, Moon and Ivanka had a closed-door meeting for about 35 minutes, according to Yonhap news agency report. It was not made public to the media at the request of the U.S. side.
Yonhap speculated that Moon and Ivanka may have exchanged opinions about talks between the United States and the DPRK, and the possible third inter-Korean summit meeting.
Kim Yo Jong, the younger sister of top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un, attended the Olympic opening ceremony earlier in the month and met with President Moon at the Blue house, delivering the DPRK leader's invitation to Moon to visit Pyongyang at a convenient time.
In response, Moon said the two Koreas should create conditions to make it happen, asking the DPRK side to more actively engage in a dialogue with the United States.
