President Moon Jae-in met Pope Francis on Thursday, and delivered him a letter from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inviting him to visit Pyongyang, The Korea Times reported.

"President Moon met Pope Francis for two hours. As the meeting was held behind closed doors, it was unclear whether they discussed the nuclear disarmament of North Korea or anything else related to the North other than the delivery of the invitation letter," a senior Cheong Wa Dae official said.

According to Moon, "given the complexities and difficulties in creating a permanent peace by dismantling the world's last remaining Cold War framework on the peninsula, the mass offered courage for Koreans to further advance the nuclear disarmament talks."