North Korea makes a friendly overture to South Korea in the form of 2 rare dogs

(Image credit: South Korea Presidential Blue House via AP)

published 1 October 2018

If it comes to receiving "beautiful letters" from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un or a pair of adorable pups, the canines win every time.

On Sunday, the Blue House, the official residence of South Korean President Moon Jae-in, shared that North Korea gave South Korea two Pungsans, rare Korean hunting dogs, as a gift, along with several pounds of food. During Moon's most recent visit to Pyongyang, Kim and his wife, Ri Sol Ju, brought up the idea of giving Moon dogs with "certificates of pedigree." The pups — named Songgang and Gomi — will live at the Blue House, joining Moon's other dogs, Maru and Tory, and cat Jjing-Jjing.

There is history behind the gift — in 2000, Kim Jong Il presented Kim Dae-jung with two Pungsan puppies named Uri and Duri, and in return, he received two Jindo dogs named Peace and Reunification.

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.