SEOUL—North and South Korean officials tested a special hotline for the first time in almost two years Wednesday, signaling a tentative thaw on the divided peninsula and highlighting differences between Seoul and Washington over how to deal with a nuclear-armed Pyongyang. The reactivation of the telephone link across the demilitarized zone—severed by the North in 2016—came as South Korea’s government moved swiftly to follow-up on a New Year’s Day suggestion by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that he would be open to talks.

Source: Wall Street Journal January 03, 2018 05:36 UTC