UN Command engages in talks with North Korea regarding detained US soldier

As per a report by AFP, Gen. Andrew Harrison said the process has started through a communications line set under the armistice agreement that stopped the fighting of the 1950-53 Korean War.

He said the well-being of Pvt. Travis King remains the command’s primary concern, but refused to provide more details, citing the sensitivity of the discussions.

North Korea has not made any public statements regarding the individual named King, who crossed the border last Tuesday while he was supposed to be heading to Fort Bliss, Texas.

US officials have expressed worry about his safety and have previously stated that North Korea has been unresponsive to their inquiries for information about him.

South Korea’s military reported that a nuclear-powered U.S. submarine, the USS Annapolis, has reached a port on Jeju Island, marking the second deployment of a major U.S. naval asset to the Korean Peninsula this month. The presence of the USS Annapolis adds to the display of military strength by the allies to counter the nuclear threats posed by North Korea.

Last week, the USS Kentucky became the first US nuclear-armed submarine to visit South Korea since the 1980s. In response to its arrival in Busan, North Korea conducted test launches of ballistic and cruise missiles, apparently demonstrating its capability for nuclear strikes against South Korea and deployed US naval vessels.

In between those launches, North Korea’s defense minister issued a veiled threat insisting the Kentucky’s docking in South Korea could be grounds for the North to use a nuclear weapon against it. North Korea has used similar rhetoric before, but the statement underscored how much relations are strained now.

Analysts say North Korea may wait weeks or even months to provide meaningful information about King to maximize leverage and add urgency to US efforts to secure his release. Some say North Korea may try to wrest concessions from Washington, such as tying his release to the United States cutting back its military activities with South Korea.

The United States and South Korea have been expanding their combined military exercises and increasing regional deployments of US strategic assets like bombers, aircraft carriers and submarines in a show of force against North Korea, which has test-fired around 100 missiles since the start of 2022.

The Annapolis, whose main mission is destroying enemy ships and submarines, is powered by a nuclear reactor but is armed with conventional weapons. The Annapolis mainly docked at Jeju to load supplies, but Jang Do Young, a spokesperson of South Korea’s navy, said the US and South Korean militaries were discussing whether to arrange training involving the vessel, AFP further reported.

Updated: 24 Jul 2023, 01:33 PM IST