NK says US soldier Travis King expressed willingness to seek refuge
U.S. Army soldier Travis King appears in this unknown location and undated photo. Reuters-Yonhap
North Korea concluded that Travis King wants refuge there or in another country because of "inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination" in the U.S. and the military, state media said on Wednesday, Pyongyang's first public acknowledgement of King's crossing from South Korea on July 18.
.
A private in the U.S. Army, King dashed into the North while on a civilian tour of the Joint Security Area (JSA) on the heavily fortified border between the two Koreas.
U.S. officials have said they believe King crossed the border intentionally, and have declined so far to classify him as a prisoner of war.
U.S. officials have said they believe King crossed the border intentionally, and have declined so far to classify him as a prisoner of war.
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.
"During the investigation, Travis King confessed that he had decided to come over to the DPRK as he harbored ill feeling against inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army," KCNA reported, using the initials of North Korea's official name. "He also expressed his willingness to seek refugee in the DPRK or a third country, saying that he was disillusioned at the unequal American society."
KCNA said King was "kept under control by soldiers of the Korean People's Army" after his crossing and the investigation is still active.
King's uncle, Myron Gates, told ABC News earlier in August that his nephew was experiencing racism during his military deployment, and after he spent time in a South Korean jail, he did not sound like himself.This handout photo taken on July 18 and provided on July 21, courtesy of Sarah Leslie, shows U.S. soldier Travis King, fourth from left in black shirts, attending a border tour to the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) dividing the two Koreas. AFP-Yonhap
Uncertain future
U.S. officials have so far said that the North had not provided substantive responses to their requests for information on King.
US focused on bringing Pvt. King home safely: Pentagon 2023-08-16 08:09 | North Korea
The Pentagon said it could not verify King's comments as reported by KCNA, and remains focused on his safe return. It did not address whether it had heard more details from North Korea.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A spokesman for the United Nations Command (UNC), which oversees the border village where King crossed, said he did not have anything to add to previous statements.
"Mentioning King's willingness to seek refuge in North Korea or a third country shows that it's still unclear where he wants to go," said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.
Tae Yong-ho, a former North Korean diplomat and now a South Korean lawmaker, said state media's description of King as an "illegal intruder" rather than voluntary defector, as well as its mention of a third country, could suggest that North Korea might not be willing to keep him for a long time.
"It raises the possibility for North Korea to send him to a third country, where U.S. officials can pick up and bring him home if he wishes," he said in a statement.
How to classify the 23-year-old has been an open question for the U.S. military.
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. The Korean Peninsula technically remains at war with the UNC providing oversight for the armistice.
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.
King, who joined the U.S. Army in January 2021, is a Cavalry Scout with the Korean Rotational Force, which is part of the U.S. security commitment to South Korea.
But his posting was dogged by legal troubles.
He faced two allegations of assault in South Korea, and eventually pleaded guilty to one instance of assault and destroying public property for damaging a police car during a profanity-laced tirade against Koreans, according to court documents. He was due to face more disciplinary measures when he arrived back in the United States.
King had finished serving military detention and had been transported by the U.S. military to the airport to return to his home unit in the United States. Instead, he left the airport, joined a tour of the border area, where he ran across despite attempts by South Korean and U.S. guards to stop him. (Reuters)
- 最近发表
- 随机阅读
-
- Swifties for Kamala raises over $100,000 in donations for Harris campaign
- 开展防范非法集资宣传 守牢群众“钱袋子”
- 雅安市开展法润万家迎新春普法活动
- 2024年雅安市“金熊猫”系列篮球赛举行
- How to unblock Xnxx for free
- 酒驾!货车载人!小车超员!分心驾驶!春节将至这些行为要不得
- 雅安市人民代表大会常务委员会任免名单
- 汇聚微光 照亮孩子成长路
- Webb telescope discovers 6 rogue worlds. They didn't form the way you'd expect.
- 我市于1月27日至3月底组织开展消防安全集中除患攻坚大整治行动
- 迎新春,送温暖!雅安市综合行政执法局慰问困难管理服务对象
- 开展春运志愿服务 展现城市文明水平
- Scientists discover where the huge dinosaur
- 普及征信知识 提升金融素养 雅安市商业银行扎实开展春节前征信宣传活动
- 挥毫泼墨迎新春 一笔一画送祝福
- 骞冲畨浜哄闈掑矝鍒嗗叕鍙革細閲戣瀺娑堣垂鑰呮潈鐩婁繚鎶ゆ暀鑲插浼犳湀璧拌繘楂樻牎鎶よ埅瀛﹀瓙
- Campbell highlights Washington Declaration amid security concerns over Putin
- 诚信经营就是最好的口碑
- 文化下乡迎新春 亮点纷呈暖民心
- 改善旅游供给 满足游客需求
- 搜索
-
- 友情链接
-