A week ago, US soldier Travis King, 23, fled to North Korea. He had spent two months in detention in South Korea and should have been on his way back home when he suddenly got off a tour bus and ran into the demilitarized zone. Since then, there has been no communication from his side.
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What awaits the US soldier?
It is unclear how the 23-year-old is doing. The United States government is doing everything it can to bring the soldier back home, but does not maintain diplomatic relations with North Korea. The UN command in charge has now stepped in for further investigation.
The North Korean government has not yet commented on this matter and has not responded to inquiries about his whereabouts and condition. King, however, is believed to be held by North Korean forces. Before him, several U.S. citizens have been detained in North Korea and released in very poor health.
The New York Post recounts several examples of US citizens who returned home in a terrible state after being detained in North Korea.
A recent, and tragic, example: 22-year-old University of Virginia student Otto Warmbier, who served 18 months behind bars there for alleged anti-state acts before being returned home in 2017 in a coma.
Warmbier, who confessed to trying to steal a political banner while on a tour in North Korea in 2015, died a week after returning to the US.
The US State Department has not had any substantive communication with North Korea since US soldier Travis King crossed into the North last week, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said https://t.co/G5LJBExUyLpic.twitter.com/EXuuHlGsYe
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 24, 2023
Read more:Kim Jong-un is using this bizarre method in North Korea to ensure 'survival of the Kim family'
What is life like in North Korea?
While President Kim Jong Un outwardly presents a luxurious country and has modern buildings and hotels built, in reality, life in the country is anything but easy. The majority of the 26 million inhabitants live in poverty.
According to reports, there is currently another severe famine happening. The totalitarian country is completely closed off, making imports difficult, which exacerbates this crisis as there have been significant crop losses. The last famine in the 1990s killed about three million inhabitants.
Read more: Kim Jong Un: Here's what we know about his mysterious children
This article has been translated from Gentside DE.
Sources used:
New York Post: What life in North Korea holds for US soldier Travis King after defecting
Zeit online: UN-Kommando hat nach Flucht von US-Soldat Kontakt zu Nordkorea
Tagesschau: Was will Travis King in Nordkorea?
