JABAR EKSPRES – North Korea has not responded to calls from the United States (US) regarding the safety and whereabouts of a US soldier who crossed the inter-Korean border into the country this week, a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday (7/19).
The US soldier, identified as private second class Travis King, crossed the military demarcation line at the Joint Security Area (JSA) in the Demilitarized Zone on Tuesday local time.
“Yesterday, the Pentagon reached out to colleagues in the Korean People’s Army,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told a daily press briefing, referring to the official name of North Korea’s military.
“As far as I know, that communication has not been answered,” he continued.
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US officials have previously said that King “intentionally” and “without authorization” crossed the military demarcation line while on a group tour of the JSA.
Miller emphasized that the US has “a number of channels through which we can send messages to the DPRK,” referring to North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
“The discussion is quite sensitive and I’m not prepared to go into details at this time,” he said at the press briefing.
The State Department spokesperson said the US was looking into the soldier’s safety and seeking his return to the US.
“We at the State Department and the UN are all continuing to work together on this issue to ascertain information about King’s safety and whereabouts,” Miller said.
“We are still gathering facts, and I want to be clear that the government has been and will continue to work actively to ensure his safety and repatriation to his family,” he said, adding.
While not responding to US calls for dialogue, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on Wednesday morning, about a week after they conducted their 12th intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test since early last year.
