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CNN —An American soldier was detained in Russia last week on suspicion of theft and is currently being held in pre-trial detention, according to two US officials. “The Army notified his family and the U.S. Department of State is providing appropriate consular support to the Soldier in Russia. The soldier was stationed in South Korea when he took leave to travel to Russia on his own, according to another US official. A State Department official confirmed that a US citizen had been detained in Russia but would not provide further details. Last July, another soldier stationed in South Korea willingly crossed into North Korea where he was immediately detained.
Persons: Gordon Black, ” “, , Cynthia Smith, , Evan Gershkovich, Marine Paul Whelan, Ksenia Karelina, John Kirby, haven’t, ” Kirby, Travis King, King, CNN’s Jennifer Hansler, Kylie Atwood Organizations: CNN, US Army, Army, Russian Federation, U.S . Department of State, Vienna Convention, Consular Relations, Soldier, US State Department, Street, Marine, NBC News, State Department, US, National Security, Joint Security Area, Incheon International Locations: American, Russia, South Korea, Vladivostok “, Vienna, Ukraine, Cavazos, Texas, Moscow, North Korea, United States, Incheon, Seoul
[1/5] North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visits Korean People's Army Air Force headquarters on the occasion of Aviation Day in North Korea, in this picture released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on December 1, 2023. On Thursday, the United States targeted North Korea with fresh sanctions over the satellite launch, designating foreign-based agents it accused of facilitating sanctions evasion. Local media reported that North Korean soldiers at the Joint Security Area (JSA) inside the DMZ had started carrying firearms again after the North withdrew from the inter-Korean military deal. The DMZ tours had restarted last week; they had been halted after a U.S. soldier's unauthorised crossing into North Korea while on a tour in July. Private Travis King was later handed back by the North and returned to the United States, where he faces charges.
Persons: Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong, Kim, KCNA, Travis King, Soo, hyang Choi, Richard Chang, Ed Davies, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Korean People's Army Air Force, Aviation, North, Korean Central News Agency, KCNA, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, United Nations, United, Local, Joint Security Area, Korean, Thomson Locations: North Korea, Rights SEOUL, Pyongyang, Seoul, United States, Korea, South Korea, U.S
CNN —Travis King, the US Army private who fled to North Korea in July, has been charged by the Army with desertion, among other crimes, according to a charging document seen by CNN Thursday. King, 23, was detained Wednesday at Ft. Bliss, Texas, according to a source familiar, who told CNN that he is being held in pre-trial detention. “A mother knows her son, and I believe something happened to mine while he was deployed. The Army promised to investigate what happened at Camp Humphries, and I await the results,” Gates added. King returned to US soil in late September after US officials said he “willfully and without authorization” crossed into North Korea in July.
Persons: CNN — Travis King, King, King’s, Claudine Gates, , , Camp Humphries, ” Gates Organizations: CNN, US Army, Army, Security Area Locations: North Korea, United States, Ft, Bliss , Texas, South Korea, Seoul, Texas
For its part, North Korea appears to have treated his case as one of illegal immigration. North Korea's KCNA state news agency said King told Pyongyang he entered North Korea illegally because he was "disillusioned about unequal U.S. The Swedish government, which represents U.S. interests in North Korea because Washington has no diplomatic presence in the country, retrieved King in North Korea and brought him to China. The State Department said the U.S. ambassador to Beijing, Nicholas Burns, met King in Dandong, China, a city bordering North Korea. King, who joined the U.S. army in January 2021, faced two allegations of assault in South Korea.
Persons: Travis King, King, Fort Sam Houston, Brittney Griner, Travis T, Sarah Leslie, Handout, Nicholas Burns, Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali, Evan Garcia, Ed Davies, Neil Fullick, Toby Chopra Organizations: U.S . Army, Reuters, Base San, Fort, Brooke Army Medical Center, Russia, Security Area, REUTERS, Army, The State Department, Osan Air Force Base, U.S, South Korean, Thomson Locations: Texas, North Korea, U.S, Base San Antonio, Panmunjom, South Korea, Pyongyang, Swedish, Washington, China, Beijing, Dandong, Shenyang, United States, Korea
A US Army soldier who crossed into North Korea is back in American custody, the White House said. Senior administration officials on Wednesday detailed aspects of the "complex operation" to bring him home. AdvertisementAdvertisementA US Army soldier who unexpectedly crossed into North Korea two months ago is now in American custody, senior Biden administration officials revealed on Wednesday. North Korea said earlier that it would expel Pvt. The US did not give any concessions to North Korea in exchange for King.
Persons: Travis King, , Jake Sullivan, King, Washington Organizations: US Army, Service, Army, Biden, Joint Security, National, King, White, Korean Central News Agency Locations: North Korea, Korea, North, South Korea, Sweden, China, Pyongyang, Swedish, Washington, Beijing, Russia, Ukraine, Korean, Texas
Sarah Leslie/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 27 (Reuters) - Private Travis King, the U.S. soldier who ran into North Korea in July, is in U.S. custody after North Korea expelled him into China, U.S. officials said on Wednesday, following rare diplomatic cooperation between the U.S., North Korea and China. A U.S. military spokesman later said an investigation indicated that White crossed into North Korea of his own free will. In a video released by the North, White denounced the United States and praised North Korea and its then leader Kim Il-Sung. - Charles Robert Jenkins walked into North Korea when on patrol on the DMZ in 1965. - James Joseph Dresnok was a 21-year old U.S. army private stationed in South Korea in 1962 when he fled to the North.
Persons: Travis T, Sarah Leslie, Handout, Travis King, Joseph T, White, Kim Il, Charles Robert Jenkins, Jenkins, Hitomi Soga, Soga, James Joseph Dresnok, Dresnok, Jerry Wayne Parrish, Larry Allen Abshier, Kim Jong, Dresnok's, Josh Smith, David Brunnstrom, Phil Stewart, Chizu Organizations: Security Area, REUTERS, U.S, North, Korea Times, United Nations Command, Washington Post, Thomson Locations: Panmunjom, South Korea, U.S, North Korea, China, China . U.S, Pyongyang, United States, Vietnam, Japan, Korean
CNN —North Korea has decided “to expel” US Army Private Travis King, who crossed into the North from South Korea during a tour of the joint security area in July, state media KCNA reported on Wednesday. “The relevant organ of the DPRK decided to expel Travis King, a soldier of the U.S. Army who illegally intruded into the territory of the DPRK, under the law of the Republic,” KCNA said. King crossed the military demarcation line from South Korea into North Korea in July during a tour of the Joint Security Area inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ). King, a junior enlisted soldier assigned to US Forces Korea, had faced assault charges in South Korea and was due to return to Fort Bliss, Texas, and be removed from the military just one day before he crossed into North Korea, CNN previously reported. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said last month that it “would not be out of character” for North Korea to use US soldier Travis King as a propaganda tool or bargaining chip.
Persons: Travis King, ” KCNA, King “, King, Fort, , John Kirby, , ” Kirby, CNN’s Jake Tapper Organizations: CNN, , DPRK, U.S . Army, Joint Security, US Forces Korea, ., National Security Locations: Korea, South Korea, Republic, North Korea, Fort Bliss , Texas, DPRK
Sarah Leslie/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Sept 27 (Reuters) - North Korea has decided to expel American soldier Travis King who it said has admitted to illegal intrusion into the country and was "disillusioned about unequal U.S. society," state media KCNA said on Wednesday. The decision was contained in the final results of an investigation into King's July border crossing published by KCNA. Last month it reported interim findings that he wanted refuge in North Korea or elsewhere because of maltreatment and racial discrimination within the army. There have been several attempts by U.S. soldiers stationed in South Korea to desert or defect to North Korea, but King's expulsion came relatively quickly compared to others who have spent years before being released from the reclusive country. King, who joined the U.S. army in January 2021, faced two allegations of assault in South Korea.
Persons: Travis T, Sarah Leslie, Handout, Travis King, KCNA, King, Jonathan Franks, King's, Myron Gates, Hyonhee Shin, Susan Heavey, Brendan O'Brien, Toby Chopra, Philippa Fletcher Organizations: Security Area, REUTERS, Rights, ., Democratic People's, Authorities, U.S . State Department, U.S . Forces, United Nations Command, Joint Security Area, ABC News, U.S, South Korean, Thomson Locations: Panmunjom, South Korea, Rights SEOUL, North Korea, DPRK, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, U.S . Forces Korea, United States, U.S
North Korea said it will expel US soldier Travis King, according to state media. AdvertisementAdvertisementNorth Korea said it will expel US soldier Travis King, who ran across the border from South Korea into its territory in July, according to state media. AdvertisementAdvertisementHe was subsequently detained by North Korean troops and investigated, KCNA said at the time. He reportedly told investigators that he wanted to seek refuge in North Korea or another country due to his disillusionment with an "unequal American society," per KCNA. Before King crossed the border, he faced accusations of punching a man, insulting the South Korean army, and damaging a police car in 2022, Reuters reported.
Persons: Travis King, King, , KCNA Organizations: US Army, Service, Korean Central News Agency, Reuters, Joint Security Area, North, South, Associated Press Locations: Korea, South Korea, North Korea
In this photo taken in Seoul on August 16, 2023, a man walks past a television showing a news broadcast featuring a photo of US soldier Travis King (C), who ran across the border into North Korea while part of a tour group visiting the Demilitarized Zone on South Korea's border on July 18. SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea said Wednesday that it will expel Travis King, the U.S. soldier who intentionally ran across the border into the isolated country this summer. King, 23, bolted across the heavily armed border on July 18 during a public tour of the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. A statement reported by the state-run news agency KCNA said that King will be "expelled" at an unspecified time. No details were given of the destination of the American Army private, who had been based in South Korea.
Persons: Travis King, KCNA, King, Kim Jong, Vladimir Putin, Kim, Claudine Gates, Gates, — Stella Kim, Patrick Smith Organizations: American Army, American Society, Incheon International, NBC News, Joint Security, North, U.S . Army, Associated Press Locations: Seoul, North Korea, Korea's, SEOUL, South Korea, U.S, North, Incheon, Pyongyang, Ukraine, Korea, America, Racine , Wisconsin, London
The White House press secretary said the U.S. was working with North Korean authorities after an American, identified as soldier Travis King, crossed over the military demarcation line while on a tour of the Joint Security Area on Tuesday. Photo: Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty ImagesSEOUL—The U.S. has successfully negotiated the release of Americans from North Korea in the past, but the circumstances surrounding the detention of a U.S. soldier who dashed across the border last month are different in ways that will likely make the task more challenging this time around.
Persons: Travis King, Anthony Wallace Organizations: White, North, Joint Security, Getty Locations: U.S, AFP, SEOUL, The, North Korea
A U.S. soldier who had served in South Korea crossed the military demarcation line separating the two Koreas into North Korea without authorization. North Korea commented Tuesday for the first time about a U.S. soldier who ran into the isolated country's territory last month. North Korea also alleged that King said he decided to cross into North Korean territory. North Korea had offered a very brief response to United Nations officials about King, the Pentagon's spokesman said Aug. 1. North Korea has also six times conducted nuclear tests, which are also banned by the U.N.
Persons: KCNA, Travis King, Lloyd Austin, King, Jonathan Franks, Claudia Gates, Gates, today's, Travis, Franks, Martin Meiners, Private King, Meiners, Patrick Ryder, Ryder Organizations: Security Area, DPRK, Democratic People's, U.S . Army, Army, Korean Central News Agency, . Defense Department, Private, United Nations, Pentagon, Air Force, Command, Joint Security Agency, United Nations Command, North Locations: Paju, South Korea, U.S, North Korea, Panmunjom, Korea, Korean, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, North, DPRK, KCNA
Pyongyang claims the US soldier who ran into North Korea in July was angry with racism and society. King was detained by North Korean troops and investigated, North Korean propaganda and state media arm KCNA wrote. He also told investigators that he wished to seek refuge in North Korea or another country, and was "disillusioned at the unequal American society," KCNA claimed. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had described King's crossing into North Korea as done "willfully and without authorization." Meanwhile, King's mother, Claudine Gates, said she was shocked to hear that King had run into North Korea.
Persons: Travis King, King, he'd, KCNA, America, Lloyd Austin, King's, Claudine Gates, Travis Organizations: US Army, Service, Tuesday, Joint Security Area, North, US Defense Department, South, Reuters, Associated Press, CBS News, US, ABC News Locations: Pyongyang, North Korea, Wall, Silicon, Korea, South Korea
Sarah Leslie/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSEOUL, Aug 16 (Reuters) - North Korea confirmed for the first time on Wednesday that it is holding American soldier Travis King, saying he crossed the border last month to escape racism and mistreatment in the U.S. military and society. WHY DID HE CROSS TO NORTH KOREA AND WHERE IS HE NOW? KCNA said he was held by the North Korean army after he crossed, but did not elaborate. Roughly 24 hours after leaving the airport, he sprinted into North Korea while touring the Joint Security Area, which sits astride the border. King spent time in a South Korean prison, however, in lieu of paying the fine.
Persons: Travis T, Sarah Leslie, Handout, Travis King, King, KCNA, King's, Myron Gates, Carl Gates, Josh Smith, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Security Area, REUTERS, Rights, U.S ., WHO, U.S . Army, Korean, Force, U.S . 1st Armored Division, 4th Infantry Division, National Defense Service, Korean Defense, Overseas Service, North Korean, Pentagon, ABC News, Daily, Airport, American Airlines staff, Reuters, Security, Court, Thomson Locations: Panmunjom, South Korea, Rights SEOUL, North Korea, U.S, Racine , Wisconsin, Korean, New Zealand, Seoul
Picture of Travis King, the US soldier who ran across the military demarcation line into North Korea on Tuesday July 18. From Travis King/FacebookThe day before he crossed into North Korea, King was supposed to board a flight to Texas, where he was to face disciplinary procedures. The last American known to be held by North Korea was Bruce Byron Lowrance, who, according to North Korean state media, crossed from China into North Korea in 2018. While in North Korea, he appeared in propaganda films, taught the country’s spies English and spent up to eight hours a day studying the writings of North Korean leaders. He was allowed to leave North Korea in 2004, two years after his Japanese wife, who was kidnapped from her home in Japan in 1978 and left North Korea under a deal between Pyongyang and Tokyo.
Persons: Travis King “, , King, Travis King, Bryce Dubee, Christine Wormuth, King “, ” Jaqueda, King’s, , Claudine Gates, Jonathan Franks, Donald Trump, Kim Jong Un, Trump, Kim, KCNA, Washington “, Private King, Bruce Byron Lowrance, Lowrance, Otto Warmbier, Warmbier, Charles Jenkins, Jenkins Organizations: South Korea CNN, Joint Security Area, North, US, CNN, 6th Squadron, 1st Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat, Armored Division, Army, Incheon International, Aspen Security, South Korean, US Navy, Korean Central News Agency, U.S . Army, Washington, Private, Swedish Embassy, Central Intelligence Agency Locations: Seoul, South Korea, North Korea, Korean, Korea, Fort Bliss , Texas, Texas, Incheon, United States, ” Jaqueda Gates, Pyongyang, Washington, Busan, Japan, North, Maryland, Swedish, China, American, Tokyo
CNN —North Korea on Wednesday confirmed publicly for the first time that US Army Private Travis King crossed into its territory. A statement from the country’s government-controlled Korean Central News Agency claimed King had expressed “his willingness to seek refugee” in North Korea or a third country. King, a junior enlisted soldier assigned to US Forces Korea, had faced assault charges in South Korea and was due to return to Fort Bliss, Texas and be removed from the military just one day before he crossed into North Korea, CNN has reported. KCNA added that he had admitted of “illegally” intruding into the territory of North Korea and said that the investigation is ongoing. Defense officials have said publicly that King “willfully and without authorization” crossed into North Korea while taking a civilian tour of the DMZ.
Persons: Travis King, King, , ” King, Fort, KCNA, Private King, King “, , Christine Wormuth, he’d, ” Wormuth, Jaqueda Gates, King’s, Biden Organizations: CNN, Wednesday, US, Korean Central News Agency, U.S . Army, Joint Security, US Forces Korea, Defense, Private, North, Army, Aspen Security, US Army, South Korean, Geneva Convention Locations: North Korea, South Korea, Fort Bliss , Texas, North Koreans, United States, Geneva
North Korean investigators have also concluded that King crossed deliberately and illegally, with the intent to stay in the North or in a third country, state news agency KCNA said. It did not address whether it had heard more details from North Korea. As an active-duty soldier he might appear to qualify as a POW, given that the United States and North Korea technically remain at war. The 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty. Factors including King's decision to cross into North Korea of his own free will, in civilian attire, appear to have disqualified him from POW status, U.S. officials have said.
Persons: Travis King, Pyongyang's, King, KCNA, Myron Gates, Soo, hyang Choi, Josh Smith, Idrees Ali, Grant McCool, Stephen Coates Organizations: U.S . Army, Joint Security Area, Korean People's Army, ABC, Pentagon, United Nations Command, UNC, U.S ., Korean, Force, U.S, South Korean, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, U.S, South Korea, ., DPRK, United States, Washington
As an active-duty soldier he might appear to qualify as a POW, given that the United States and North Korea technically remain at war. A Pentagon spokesperson declined to comment on King's POW status, but said the defense department's priority was to bring him home and it was working to achieve that through all available channels. Washington has conveyed that message in private communications to Pyongyang, the U.S. officials said, adding that those communications have not invoked POW status. PROTECTIONS FOR CAPTIVESPrisoners of war are protected by the Third Geneva Convention, to which North Korea and the U.S. are signatories. After serving time in detention in South Korea, King had been due to face military disciplinary action on his return to Fort Bliss, Texas.
Persons: Travis T, Sarah Leslie, Handout, Travis King, King, Rachel VanLandingham, Geoffrey Corn, we'd, Corn, Fort, Christopher Stone, Andrew Ramirez, Steven Gonzales, Robert Goodman, Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali, Josh Smith, Simon Lewis, Don Durfee, Daniel Wallis Organizations: Security Area, REUTERS, United, Reuters, Geneva Convention, U.S, Pentagon, POW, Department, Third Geneva Convention, North, Southwestern Law School, Texas Tech University School of Law, U.S . Army, Cavalry, Korean, Force, NATO, Thomson Locations: Panmunjom, South Korea, REUTERS WASHINGTON, United States, Geneva, North, North Korea, Washington, Pyongyang, U.S, Fort Bliss , Texas, Yugoslavia, Lebanon, Syria
However, Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder said that North Korea only acknowledged the U.N. Command's request for information about U.S. Army Private Travis King and stopped short of offering detailed information about him. When pressed, Ryder said that North Korea's message back to the U.N. Command was just "an acknowledgement" of the U.N. Command's inquiry. King sprinted into North Korea on July 18 while on a tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the border, landing the United States in a new diplomatic quandary with nuclear-armed North Korea. After his release from the prison, which is designated for U.S. military members and other foreigners, King stayed at a U.S. base in South Korea for a week, Yonhap said. U.S. officials have expressed deep concern over King's fate in North Korea.
Persons: Travis T, Sarah Leslie, Handout, Patrick Ryder, Travis King, Ryder, King, Yonhap, Otto Warmbier, Idrees Ali, Phil Stewart, Grant McCool Organizations: Security Area, REUTERS, United Nations Command, Pentagon, U.S, Army, DPRK, Democratic People's, Command, U.S . Army, Cavalry, Korean, Force, Fort Bliss , Texas ., Thomson Locations: Panmunjom, South Korea, REUTERS WASHINGTON, North Korea, Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, United States, Cheonan, U.S, Fort Bliss , Texas, Fort Bliss , Texas . U.S
SEOUL, July 25 (Reuters) - Tourists should expect far stricter supervision if visits to the border between North and South Korea resume, analysts said, after U.S. soldier Travis King used an organised tour to get close enough to dash across to North Korea last week. The U.S.-led United Nations Command (UNC), which oversees the area, has indefinitely suspended all JSA tours after King's unauthorised crossing. Not all DMZ tours stop at the JSA, which is the only spot where visitors can step up to and even briefly over the border into the North. Visiting JSA is free of charge for South Korean nationals, but the tour King was on started at $180, according to a Tripadvisor listing. King's case would be the first successful border crossing by a JSA tourist ever, Zwetsloot said.
Persons: Travis King, King, Andrew Harrison, I've, Jacco Zwetsloot, Zwetsloot, we'll, Lim Eul, Banning, Lim, Harrison, Soo, hyang Choi, Josh Smith, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: U.S . Army, Joint Security Area, United Nations Command, UNC, JSA, NK, South, North, Kyungnam University, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North, South Korea, Korea, Panmunjom, Washington, The U.S, Seoul
UN Command talking to North Korea about U.S. soldier Travis King
  + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com   time to read: +3 min
The United Nations Command and North Korea have begun discussing the case of Travis King, the U.S. soldier who crossed into the North last week, the deputy commander of the U.S.-led command that oversees the Korean War truce said on Monday. King, a U.S. Army private serving in South Korea, sprinted into North Korea on July 18 while on a tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the inter-Korean border, landing Washington in a fresh diplomatic quandary with the nuclear-armed North. Last week, North Korea conducted ballistic missile tests hours after a U.S. nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine arrived at a South Korean port. North Korea is banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions from using ballistic missile technology, which Pyongyang defiantly rejects. Late last week, North Korea warned that deployment of U.S. aircraft carriers, bombers or missile submarines in South Korea could meet the criteria for its use of nuclear weapons.
Persons: Travis King, General Andrew Harrison, Harrison, King Organizations: Army, Reuters, The United Nations Command, U.S . Army, UNC, North, British Army, Korean People's Army, ., Joint Security Area, People, U.S Locations: North Korea, U.S, South Korea, Washington, Korean, Pyongyang, Fort Bliss , Texas
SEOUL, July 24 (Reuters) - The United Nations Command and North Korea have begun discussing the case of Travis King, the U.S. soldier who crossed into the North last week, the deputy commander of the U.S.-led command that oversees the Korean War truce said on Monday. King, a U.S. Army private serving in South Korea, sprinted into North Korea on July 18 while on a tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the inter-Korean border, landing Washington in a fresh diplomatic quandary with the nuclear-armed North. Last week, North Korea conducted ballistic missile tests hours after a U.S. nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine arrived at a South Korean port. North Korea is banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions from using ballistic missile technology, which Pyongyang defiantly rejects. Late last week, North Korea warned that deployment of U.S. aircraft carriers, bombers or missile submarines in South Korea could meet criteria for its use of nuclear weapons.
Persons: Travis King, General Andrew Harrison, Harrison, King, Hyunsu Yim, Jack Kim, Ed Davies, Simon Cameron, Moore Organizations: United Nations Command, U.S . Army, UNC, North, British Army, Korean People's Army, ., Joint Security Area, People, U.S, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, U.S, South Korea, Washington, Korean, Pyongyang, Fort Bliss , Texas
Seoul, South Korea CNN —A “conversation has commenced” with North Korea over US Army Pvt. Travis King, who crossed the border between North and South Korea last week in the demilitarized zone separating the two nations, the deputy commander of the United Nations Command (UNC) said Monday. It controls the South Korean side of the JSA, the one place where the North and South can meet for talks. King has not been publicly seen or heard from since he crossed into North Korea last Tuesday. North Korea has also not said anything about the status or condition of the missing soldier.
Persons: Travis King, King, Andrew Harrison, , , ” Harrison, Organizations: South Korea CNN, US Army, United Nations Command, UNC, Joint Security, Korean People’s Army, Seoul Foreign Correspondents, UN Command, CNN, American Airlines, Incheon International Airport, Incheon, Security Locations: Seoul, South Korea, North Korea, North, Korean, United States, Korea, Bliss, Texas
SEOUL, July 21 (Reuters) - When U.S. soldier Travis King sprinted across the border into North Korea from the South this week, he disappeared into a North Korea where lingering COVID-19 concerns and restrictions have made the already secretive country more isolated than ever. Officials in Washington said North Korea had yet to give any response through a number of channels, including at the United Nations. North Korean border guards fatally shot and burned the body of a South Korean fisheries official near their disputed maritime border in 2020. North Korean guards at the site still shelter inside buildings, apparently to avoid the risk of catching COVID. But North Korea often seeks meetings with high-level American officials before any releases, and that could be complicated by their worries over COVID, he added.
Persons: Travis King, King, Andrei Lankov, Lankov, Isaac Taylor, Kim Jong Un, Steve Tharp, COVID, Tharp, Bobby Hall, Josh Smith, Lincoln Organizations: Korea Risk, U.S, United Nations Command, United Nations, Security, U.S . Army, North, Thomson Locations: SEOUL, North Korea, Korea, Pyongyang, Seoul, U.S, United States, Washington, North Korean, Korean, South . Sweden, North
U.S. officials said Thursday that they had no information on the whereabouts or condition of an Army soldier who crossed into North Korea without authorization and had not spoken to North Korean authorities about the incident. The soldier, Pvt. Travis T. King, was supposed to fly to Texas on Tuesday to face disciplinary actions for misconduct. But instead of boarding his flight at the international airport in Incheon, about 30 miles west of Seoul, he joined a civilian group that went to tour the joint security area between North and South Korea at Panmunjom, where he ran across the border and was taken into custody by North Korean forces. John Kirby, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said the administration is “doing everything we can” to determine the soldier’s condition and “making it clear that we want to see him safely and quickly returned to the United States and to his family.”But winning Private King’s release — and learning about his status — is greatly complicated by a deep diplomatic freeze between the United States and North Korea, which technically remain at war.
Persons: Travis T, John Kirby Organizations: Army, North, National Security Council Locations: North Korea, Texas, Incheon, Seoul, North, South Korea, Panmunjom, North Korean, United States
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