ReutersTravis King
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 02:12
The US soldier who crossed the border into North Korea on a tourist tour last month was disillusioned by the inequality in the US. North Korea claims Travis King stated that. He also said that he has “negative feelings” towards the US military because of the “inhumane treatment and racial discrimination” he allegedly experienced there.
King’s statements were circulated through North Korea’s state-run KCNA news agency, which tracks Kim Jong-un’s regime one-on-one. It cannot be confirmed whether anything about what the North Korean propaganda channel is reporting is correct. It is, however, the first official confirmation from North Korea that the American is detained in the country. The regime says it will investigate Travis King further.
King also said he may seek asylum in North Korea or another country. The US Department of Defense says it cannot verify that King actually said all this. Washington remains committed to his return, although there are reportedly still no official talks between the US and North Korea about King.
Tour
King visited Panmunjom on July 18, on the armistice line separating the two Koreas. To everyone’s surprise, during the tour there, he suddenly walked across the border into North Korea, where he was arrested.
His motive is still unclear. He had served a short prison sentence in South Korea for assault and was due to be returned to the US, where the 23-year-old soldier faced further disciplinary action.
Otto Warmbier
King is the first American in nearly five years to be detained by North Korea. In 2018, North Korea released American Bruce Byron Lowrance, who had entered the country illegally from China. Another case that has received international attention is the imprisonment of American student Otto Warmbier, who was released after a year in 2017 and died shortly after returning to the US
It is not clear how Travis King is doing at the moment. The US has previously expressed concern about its well-being, as Pyongyang refuses to respond to Washington’s questions about it.
2023-08-16 00:12:33
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