North Korean leader Kim Jong-un thanked outgoing South Korean President Moon Jae-in for his efforts to improve relations between the two countries, official North Korean media reported on Friday (April 22nd).

The "Blue House", seat of the presidency in Seoul, confirmed that the two leaders exchanged friendly letters, but without revealing the details.

This unexpected gesture comes at a time when Seoul and its allies suspect Pyongyang of preparing to resume its nuclear tests after having carried out an unprecedented series of missile tests since the beginning of the year.

Moon Jae-in's successor, Yoon Suk-yeol, who takes office on May 10, has pledged to take a hard line on Pyongyang.

Stalled negotiations

Moon Jae-in has met Kim Jong-un three times and contributed to talks between the North Korean leader and then-US President Donald Trump.

Since 2019, negotiations have stalled, partly due to disagreements over sanctions relief and what North Korea would be willing to give up in return.

Since then, Pyongyang has called the South Korean president a "poor mediator" and destroyed the inter-Korean liaison office located on its soil, one of the symbols of détente on the peninsula which had been financed by Seoul.

In March, for the first time since 2017, North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), breaking a moratorium it had observed since 2017.

"Hope for the Future"

On Friday, KCNA, North Korea's official news agency, reported that Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in believed that inter-Korean relations would grow if the two sides "hopefully make steady efforts".

Kim Jong-un also said the "historic" summits with Moon Jae-in gave people "hope for the future", KCNA added.

Kim Jong-un "appreciated the pains and efforts exerted by Moon Jae-in for the great cause of the nation until the last days of his mandate", she underlined, specifying that this exchange of letters between the two men "demonstrates their deep trust".

With AFP

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