North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

Korean leaders exchange friendly letters in rare break from tensions

The exchange of letters came against a backdrop of strained cross-border ties since a failed North Korea-US summit in 2019, and flaring tension after Pyongyang launched intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) last month, breaking a self-imposed 2017 moratorium.

Moon sent a letter on Wednesday and promised to continue to try to lay a foundation for unification based on joint declarations reached at summits in 2018, despite the "difficult situation," the North's official KCNA news agency said.

North Korean leader's brother dies in Malaysia

Kim Jong Nam, the older half-brother of the North Korean leader, was known to spend a significant amount of his time outside the country and had spoken out publicly against his family's dynastic control of the isolated state.

In a statement, Malaysian police said the dead man, aged 46, held a passport under the name Kim Chol.

Kim Jong Nam has been caught in the past using forged travel documents.

Police official Fadzil Ahmat said the cause of Mr Kim's death was not yet known, and a post mortem would be carried out on the body.