Trump to greet detainees freed from North Korea

President Trump and Vice President Mike Pence arrived early Thursday morning to greet three Americans as they flew into Joint Base Andrews, outside the U.S. capital, less than 24 hours after they were released by North Korea. The three men, Kim Dong Chul, Kim Hak Song and Tony Kim, were released during a visit on Tuesday by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and were in the air less than one hour after being released in North Korea’s capital city, Pyongyang. 

Vice President Pence arrived first at Andrews by helicopter early Thursday morning, followed by Mr. Trump and First Lady Melania. 

Pompeo and the former detainees were flying in separate planes; Secretary Pompeo touched down first. The plane carrying the three former detainees arrived about half an hour behind Pompeo’s at the U.S. base in Maryland. The plane pulled to a rest in front of a giant U.S. flag, stretched between two cranes on the tarmac. Mr. Trump boarded their plane with the First Lady and was expected to walk down the stairs onto the tarmac with them. 

While the three men have been able to walk onto the plane on their own strength and were said to be in good health, they were to be transported immediately to the U.S. military’s Walter Reed hospital in Washington for complete health checks. 

In a statement ahead of their return, the three freed men thanked the U.S. government, Mr. Trump and the American people “for bringing us home.”

“We thank God, and all our families and friends who prayed for us and for our return. God Bless America, the greatest nation in the world,” the three men said in a statement released by the State Department.

Pompeo accompanied the men as he capped his 12-and-a-half hour trip to Pyongyang, which included a 90-minute visit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. 

KCNA/REUTERS

Pence issued a statement on Wednesday crediting “President Trump’s tough minded diplomacy” with winning the release of the three men, saying the administration was “encouraged” by it, but warning, “we will not let off the pressure until we achieve full denuclearization” of North Korea.  

North Korea released the prisoners as Pompeo visited the country to nail down the details of a looming meeting between Kim Jong Un and President Trump. U.S. officials are now planning for the summit to happen in Singapore, sources told CBS News on Wednesday.

As soon as the plane cleared North Korean airspace on Wednesday, Pompeo called Mr. Trump to inform him of the releases, and say that all three men were apparently in good health. Their families were then notified by State Department officials.  

State Department officials kept the three former North Korean detainees away from members of the press during their trip back to the mainland United States. After departing North Korea, the two planes carrying Pompeo and the freed men stopped in Anchorage, Alaska, to refuel.

State Department officials refused to discuss anything but the most basic details of their conditions, citing privacy concerns. 

Relatively little is known about the men’s time in North Korean custody. All are Korean-Americans, and the circumstances under which they ended up in North Korean prisons remain unclear. Below is a brief explanation of who the three men are, and what little is known about their detentions.

Kim Dong Chul

Kim, a South Korean-born U.S. citizen, has been held the longest. The former Virginia resident was sentenced in April 2016 to 10 years in prison with hard labor after being convicted of espionage.

He reportedly ran a trade and hotel service company in Rason, a special economic zone on North Korea’s border with Russia.

Kim Hak Song

Kim worked in agricultural development at an experimental farm run by the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. The university is the only privately funded college in North Korea and was founded in 2010 with donations from Christian groups. He was detained last May for alleged anti-state activities.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency said in May 2017 Kim was detained and that “a relevant institution is now conducting detailed investigation into his crimes.”

He worked at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology. 

Tony Kim

Tony Kim, who also uses the name Kim Sang-duk, was detained a year ago at the Pyongyang airport. He taught at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, just like Kim Hak Song.

He was accused of committing unspecified criminal acts intended to overthrow the government. The North has not said the two cases of staff at the university are connected.

In April 2017, the chancellor of the university said Kim, who is in his 50s, taught accounting at the university for about a month and had taught at a university in China before coming to Pyongyang. He said he was informed that the detention had “nothing to do” with Kim’s work at the university, but he did not know anything further.

North Korea only confirmed the detention of Kim in May 2017.