UN Engages in Communication with North Korea Regarding Detained US Soldier

The United Nations Command (UNC) and North Korea have initiated discussions concerning Travis King, the American soldier who crossed into North Korea last week.

The matter was stated by Lieutenant General Andrew Harrison, the deputy commander of the United States-led command overseeing the Korean Armistice Agreement.

Private King, a US Army soldier stationed in South Korea, ran into North Korea on July 18 during a tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the inter-Korean border.

The conversations between UNC and North Korea's military were conducted through a mechanism established under the armistice, said Lieutenant General Andrew Harrison, who is a British Army officer serving as the deputy commander of the multinational force.

He emphasized that their primary concern is Private King's welfare and declined to provide further details.

Harrison stated, "The conversation has commenced with the KPA (Korean People's Army) through the mechanisms of the (Korean) Armistice Agreement.

I can't say anything that could prejudice that process."

Response of North Korea

North Korea's state media, which usually comments on cases of detained US nationals, has remained silent regarding King's crossing into the country.

The incident occurred amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Shortly after a US nuclear-armed ballistic missile-capable submarine arrived at a South Korean port, North Korea conducted ballistic missile tests.

It was the first visit of this nature since the 1980s, serving as a reminder to North Korea that Washington maintains nuclear-tipped missiles deployed within close striking distance.

North Korea's actions are in violation of UN Security Council resolutions, which prohibit the use of ballistic missile technology, a fact that Pyongyang defiantly rejects.

Subsequently, North Korea fired a barrage of cruise missiles towards the western sea of the Korean Peninsula, and another US nuclear-powered submarine arrived in South Korea on Monday.

Furthermore, North Korea issued a warning that the deployment of US aircraft carriers, bombers, or missile submarines in South Korea could meet the criteria for their use of nuclear weapons.

(Courtesy: Al-Jazeera)