U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held talks on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) with his counterparts from Japan and the Republic of Korea (ROK) ahead of a summit between DPRK's leader and U.S. president, the State Department said on Monday.

The phone calls had on January 20 came after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that a location for his summit with Kim Jong Un – which is to take place near the end of February – has been decided.

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Trump, Kim to meet again in February after DPRK officials visit White House

Pompeo discussed the "next steps" on the DPRK engagement with Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, while he and ROK Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha "updated each other" on engagements with Pyongyang, the State Department said.

DPRK senior official Kim Yong Chol met Trump at the White House on Friday for an unusually-long 90 minutes as the countries seek a denuclearization accord that could ease decades of hostility.

On Saturday, Trump said a "lot of progress" has been made on the issue.

Kim Jong Un and Trump first met in June in Singapore, where they signed a vaguely-worded document in which Kim pledged to work toward the "denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula."