Kim Jong-un thanked Moon Jae-in, who is about to leave power, for his action in favor of improving relations between the two countries.
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 22). This unexpected gesture comes at a time when Seoul and its allies suspect Pyongyang is preparing to resume its nuclear tests after conducting an unprecedented series of missile tests since the beginning of the year.
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Moon Jae-in’s successor, Yoon Suk-yeol, who takes office on May 10, has pledged to crack down on Pyongyang. The “Blue House”, seat of the presidency in Seoul, confirmed that the two leaders exchanged friendly letters, but without revealing the details. Moon Jae-in has met Kim Jong-un three times and contributed to talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and then-US President Donald Trump. Since 2019, negotiations have stalled, in part due to disagreements over the lifting of sanctions and what North Korea would be willing to give up in return.
Since then, Pyongyang has given the South Korean president a “bad mediator” and destroyed the inter-Korean liaison office on its territory, one of the symbols of relaxation on the peninsula financed by Seoul. In March, North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time since 2017, breaking a moratorium that had been in place since 2017.
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On Friday, North Korea’s official news agency, KCNA, reported that Kim Jong Un and Moon Jae-in believed inter-Korean relations would develop if the two sides “made, with hope, constant efforts”† Kim Jong-un also said that the peaks “historical” with Moon Jae-in gave the people “hope for the future”added KCNA.
Kim Jong-un “Moon appreciated Jae In’s pain and efforts for the great cause of the nation until the last days of his tenure”she underlined, pointing out that this correspondence between the two men “shows their deep confidence”†
