SEOUL: The office of South Korean President Moon Jae In on Friday confirmed an exchange of letters between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un(pix).
According to Yonhap news agency, Kim sent the letter Thursday in response to a farewell letter that Moon sent the previous day as he prepared to leave office after a five-year term that included three summit meetings with Kim and two summits between Kim and then United States (US) President Donald Trump.
In his letter, Moon called on Kim to swiftly resume talks with the US and make efforts for dialogue with South Korea’s incoming government of President-elect Yoon Suk Yeol, presidential spokesperson Park Kyung Mee told reporters Friday.
“Holding the hands of Chairman Kim, I took one clear step that would change the fate of the Korean Peninsula,“ Moon said in the letter, according to Park. “The era of confrontation should be overcome with dialogue.”
In the response letter, Kim said the two sides made “indelible achievements.”
“Though much is left desired, my belief remains unchanged that if the South and the North pour sincerity in based on efforts made so far, inter-Korean relations can move forward as much as one wants,“ Kim was quoted as saying in the letter.
Kim thanked Moon for his peace efforts, saying he will continue to respect Moon after his retirement.
Moon and Kim had made strides in efforts to create lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, but those achievements fell apart after a second summit between Kim and Trump in Hanoi ended without an agreement on denuclearisation.
The exchange of letters came amid heightened tensions over concern that the North could undertake yet another nuclear test after successfully test-firing a massive intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the US.
Earlier in the day, the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) revealed the exchange of letters, saying the two leaders shared the same view that inter-Korean relations would “improve and develop” if both sides make “tireless efforts with hope.”-Bernama
