Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed Monday to take the lead, together with South Korean President Moon Jae In, in stepping up pressure on North Korea at the upcoming Group of 20 summit.

(Pool Photo)

In their telephone talks, Abe and Trump affirmed they will hold a trilateral meeting with Moon on the sidelines of the G-20 summit starting Friday in Germany, to discuss how the three countries should cooperate to tackle the threat from the North, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Koichi Hagiuda said.

Moon has advocated dialogue with Pyongyang, which continues to develop nuclear arms and ballistic missiles in defiance of international sanctions, while Abe is calling for increased pressure on the North rather than direct dialogue.

Trump and Moon agreed in Washington last Friday to work with Japan and apply "maximum pressure" on North Korea, while leaving open the door to dialogue "under the right circumstances."

According to Hagiuda, Abe told Trump of his praise for fresh U.S. sanctions imposed last week on a Chinese bank and individuals accused of laundering money for North Korea.

Trump is also set to hold bilateral talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the G-20 sidelines.

Washington arranged Monday's phone call in preparation for the G-20, Hagiuda said.