American Soldier Travis King Returns to the U.S. After Being Expelled by North Korea
Travis King, the young American soldier who crossed the border on foot from South Korea into North Korea in July, has returned to the U.S. A defense official confirmed that a plane carrying King landed in San Antonio at about 1:30 a.m. EDT on Thursday. North Korea had announced on Wednesday that it would expel King, claiming that he had confessed to entering the country illegally.
On Wednesday, King was sent across North Korea’s border into China, where he was then transferred to U.S. custody. U.S. officials stated that no concessions were made by Washington to secure King’s release. King was met by the American ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns, in the city of Dandong, which borders North Korea.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed that King was in “good health and good spirits” as he made his way back home. Miller also suggested that King was likely interrogated during his time in North Korean custody, as per their past practices with detainees.
U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan expressed gratitude to the Swedish government and China for their roles in arranging King’s release. King’s family also shared a message from his mother, Claudine Gates, thanking the United States Army and requesting privacy for the family.
Travis King, a Private 2nd Class in the U.S. Army, entered North Korea while participating in a guided tour of the border village of Panmunjom. He had absconded from an airport in Seoul where he was supposed to board a flight back to the U.S. Previously, North Korea claimed that King had crossed the border due to alleged “inhuman maltreatment and racial discrimination within the U.S. Army,” but these allegations could not be verified by the U.S. military.
King had been scheduled to return to the U.S. after serving time at a detention facility in South Korea for assaulting two people and damaging a police car. Instead, he skipped his flight and crossed into North Korea during the civilian tour of the border town.
According to Professor Yang Moo-jin of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, King’s status as a fugitive likely made him “unsuitable for propaganda purposes” to North Korea. Yang added that a “lukewarm” response from Washington may have contributed to North Korea’s decision to deport King.
This article includes contributions from CBS News’ Cami McCormick in Washington, D.C., and Jen Kwon in Seoul.