Unease rises over status of AWOL soldier

WASHINGTON — The White House on Thursday expressed deep concern about the well-being of a U.S. soldier who bolted across the heavily armed North Korea border earlier this week as North Korean officials have yet to respond to U.S. requests for basic information about the AWOL soldier.

The history of rough treatment of Americans detained by North Koreans — including the 2017 death of a 22-year-old student after he was flown home in a vegetative state after 17 months in captivity — is top of mind as U.S. officials seek answers about Pvt. Travis King.

“This is not a country that is known for humane treatment of Americans, or actually anybody else for that matter,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said. “We don’t know where he is. We don’t know the conditions in which he’s living right now. And it’s the not knowing that is deeply concerning to us and we’re trying as best we can to get as much information as we can about him.”

Without mentioning the soldier, North Korea’s defense minister issued a veiled threat Thursday, suggesting the docking of a nuclear-armed U.S. submarine in South Korea could be grounds for a nuclear attack by the North. North Korea has used such rhetoric before, but the latest threat could signal just how strained ties are right now.

King, who was supposed to be on his way to Fort Bliss, Texas, after finishing a prison sentence in South Korea for assault, ran into North Korea while on a civilian tour of the border village of Panmunjom on Tuesday. He is the first known American held in North Korea in nearly five years.

According to a U.S. official, King — who chose to serve his time at a labor camp rather than pay the nearly $4,000 fine — has been declared AWOL. The punishment for being away without leave can include confinement in the brig, forfeiture of pay or dishonorable discharge and it is largely based on how long they were away and whether they were apprehended or returned on their own. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter.