Pyongyang, December 20 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Un, vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Workers' Party of Korea, received a message of condolences from O. N. Kozhemyako, governor of Amur Region of the Russian Federation, on Monday.

The message said:

Respected Kim Jong Un,

It was with profound grief that I received the sad news of sudden demise of Kim Jong Il, the outstanding leader of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea who has been respected not only by Russia but by the rest of the world.

On behalf of the government of Amur Region and all inhabitants and on my own behalf I express sincere condolences to the friendly Korean people stricken with great sorrow.

Kim Jong Il made a really important contribution to the development of cooperation between the Far East Region of Russia and the DPRK.

We will never forget the visits of the great leader of the DPRK to Amur Region and the Bureya Hydro-electric Power Station in August 2011 and the friendly dialogue which continued in Pyongyang in October 2011.

It is the basic line of Amur Region for boosting the friendship and cooperation with your country to implement the projects to develop the relations between Amur Region and the DPRK agreed upon in the course of meeting with Kim Jong Il.

As governor of Amur Region I reiterate the invariable will of the leadership of the region to develop multifaceted relations with the DPRK in the future, too.

I express profound condolences to the friendly Korean people once again over the great loss suffered by them.