Kim Jong-Il praises late S Korea president

The North Korean leader, Kim Jong Il, has sent a message of condolence to the family of the South's former president, Kim Dae Jung, who died of heart failure yesterday.

Kim Dae Jung won a Nobel Peace Prize for opening up relations between the two Koreas. 

Following the former president's death on Tuesday, no date has been set for his funeral. 

But North Korea has already contacted his family with an offer to send a delegation. 

During his time in office, Kim Dae Jung built closer ties with the North and organised the historic summit in June 2000 - the first time the leaders of the two countries had met since the Korean war. 

Relations have since deteriorated markedly, so the offer by Pyongyang to send senior officials to the funeral in Seoul is being seen as a sign of a possible easing of tensions.