North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has sent a condolence letter to President Moon Jae-in following the passing of his mother on Tuesday.

Presidential spokesperson Ko Min-jung told reporters on Thursday that Kim sent the letter on Wednesday.

According to Ko, the North Korean leader extended sympathies and mourned the loss of Moon’s mother in the letter.  

The condolence letter was sent via the truce village of Panmunjeom and delivered to Moon at Namcheon Catholic Cathedral in the city of Busan where an altar has been set up for the deceased.

The last time Kim expressed condolences over the passing of a South Korean figure was in June after the death of Lee Hee-ho, the widow of former President Kim Dae-jung. 

Kim's sister Yo-jong hand-delivered a condolence letter along with flowers on her brother's behalf at Panmunjeom.

Attention now turns to whether the recent correspondence to Moon leads to a breakthrough in strained inter-Korean ties and in the Korean peace process.

[Photo : YONHAP News]