Malaysia ordered North Korea's diplomats to leave the country within 48 hours and formally announced the closure of its embassy in Pyongyang, its foreign ministry revealed on Friday, responding to the DPRK's severing of diplomatic ties just hours earlier.

The rapid decay of bilateral relations follows Malaysia's decision to extradite North Korean national Mun Chol Myong to the United States on March 17, after his appeal against extradition was rejected earlier in the month.