North Korea confirms US soldier Travis King is in the country and he seeks for asylum
North Korea confirmed publicly for the first time that US Army Pvt. Travis King crossed into its territory.
A statement from the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that US Army Pvt. Travis King had expressed his willingness to seek refuge in North Korea or a third country.
The North Korean statement said that, he confessed that he had decided to enter North Korea as he harbored ill feeling against inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the US Army.
Pyongyang statement on Tuesday revealed that US soldier who crossed the border into North Korea on July 18 admitted his illegal entry and expressed his willingness to take refuge.
On the other hand, US officials said they believe King crossed the border on purpose.
According to the North Korean Statement, the American soldier was under investigation, which he confessed that he decided to come to North Korea because he was upset about the inhumane treatment and racial discrimination within the US military.
Travis King, 23, was imprisoned for two months in South Korea after he got into a fight in a bar, hitting a South Korean citizen.
He once quarreled with the police, and was released on July 10 and transferred to Seoul Airport, where he was scheduled to leave for the United States to be subject to disciplinary action.
Instead, he voluntarily and without permission crossed the border between South Korea and North Korea, as part of a visit to the Demilitarized Zone separating the two countries.
The Demilitarized Zone that separats the two Koreas since the 1950-1953 war.
After the war, an armistice in the absence of a peace treaty was the status, as the two Koreas are still officially in a state of war and the borders are fortified and mined, with the exception of Panmunjom, where the borders are limited to a small concrete wall.
It’s allowed to visit the area supervised by the United Nations, but it’s necessary to book weeks in advance of the trip and provide a copy of the passport.
