Japan has decided to halt drills to prepare for a North Korean missile attack after a summit between the leaders of the United States and North Korea eased tension, Kyodo reported on Thursday. A Cabinet Office official in Tokyo told Reuters it would make an announcement on Friday concerning the maneuvers. Japan welcomed the summit as a first step towards the denuclearization of North Korea, but said the US-South Korean exercises were a vital deterrent to North Korean threats. Pyongyang last year launched two missiles that flew over Japan and conducted its sixth nuclear test. Tokyo held its first evacuation drill in January and smaller Japanese towns and villages have conducted similar exercises.