Reports: Americans Held in N. Korea Have Been Moved

 

The United States government is studying reports that three Americans held in North Korea have been moved from a labor¹ camp.

Reuters news service reported that an unnamed American official said the three have been put in a hotel near the North Korean capital Pyongyang.

The move comes as both sides continue efforts to plan a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump² and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

The American official said there was no immediate³ confirmation⁴ on a change in the conditions under which the Americans are being held.

A possible sign of goodwill⁵

Trump administration officials have pressed for the release of the Korean-Americans as a sign of goodwill before the planned meeting.

Former New York City Mayor and Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani said the three would be released on Thursday.

Trump made note of the three Americans held in North Korea late Wednesday on Twitter. He suggested there might be more information about their situation soon. “Stay tuned⁶!” he tweeted.

The summit between Trump and Kim is expected to take place in late May or early June.

Trump would be the third world leader to meet with Kim Jong Un this year. In March, Kim met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. And last week, he met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in in Panmunjom.

The North Korean leader, who took power in 2011, had never met with top officials of any country before this year.

The three not heard from since June

The three Korean-Americans are Kim Hak-song, Tony Kim and Kim Dong-chul. They have been held in a North Korean labor camp.

South Korean media reported Wednesday that a South Korean activist⁷ said North Korea had moved the three in early April.

A U.S. State Department spokeswoman said she could not confirm the reports. However, she added, “The welfare and safety of U.S. citizens abroad is one of the highest priorities of the Department of State. We are working to see U.S. citizens who are detained in North Korea come home as soon as possible.”

The last time any American official had met with the Korean-Americans was in June 2017.

Tony Kim was detained on April 22, 2017 at Pyongyang’s airport. He had been teaching accounting⁸ at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology known as PUST. Kim Hak-song also had been working at PUST. He was detained in May of last year. Kim Dong-chul was arrested in October 2016 and sentenced to 10 years of hard labor on charges of spying.

Tony Kim’s family told Reuters, through a spokesman, that they were hopeful but had not heard anything from Kim since last June.

I’m Mario Ritter.

Words in This Story

goodwill –n. an action or gift that adds to the reputation of the giver

summit –n. a meeting between the leaders of two or more governments

welfare –n. the wellbeing of people

priority –n. something that is more important than other things

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

3 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

4 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

5 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

6 tuned   

adj.调谐的，已调谐的v.调音( tune的过去式和过去分词 )；调整；（给收音机、电视等）调谐；使协调

参考例句：

• The resort is tuned in to the tastes of young and old alike. 这个度假胜地适合各种口味，老少皆宜。
• The instruments should be tuned up before each performance. 每次演出开始前都应将乐器调好音。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

8 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。