North and South Korea restore severed cross-border hotline

Breakthrough comes following exchange of letters between leaders in Seoul and Pyongyang.

South and North Korea have restored cross-border communications, just over a year since the hotline was cut off, as the two countries look to rebuild trust, South Korea’s presidential Blue House said on Tuesday. North Korea’s state media outlet, KCNA, also said all inter-Korean communication channels were reopened at 10am on Tuesday (01:00 GMT) in line with an agreement between the countries’ two leaders. The announcement comes 13 months after Pyongyang shut down all communication in protest over Seoul’s supposed failure to stop activists from sending anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets across the border.