U.S. says N. Korea taking steps to de-escalate tensions

The United States has seen North Korea taking steps "both on land and at sea" to de-escalate heightened tensions after reaching a peace agreement with South Korea, the Pentagon press secretary said Tuesday.

The agreement, reached early Tuesday, defused tensions that had spiked sharply following last week's exchange of artillery fire and sparked fears of a major clash as the North showed signs of provocative moves, such as special forces moving to front-line areas and submarines leaving their bases.

"As this agreement moved forward, we have seen at least on the part of North Koreans some efforts to de-escalate that we've been able to see both on land and at sea," Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said at a briefing. "It doesn't mean we're back to normal, but just we feel better about the situation."

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