North Korea frees jailed Americans, but no 'quid pro quo', US says
The US State Department yesterday announced the release of two Americans, Kenneth Bae and Matthew Todd Miller, who had been imprisoned by North Korea.
The US State Department yesterday announced the release of two Americans who had been imprisoned by North Korea.
"The Department of State welcomes the release of US citizens Kenneth Bae and Matthew Todd Miller from the DPRK, where they have been held for two years and seven months, respectively," it said.
The State Department said the pair were freed with the help of US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, who travelled to North Korea and "engaged on behalf of the United States in discussions with DPRK authorities about the release of two citizens".
A senior State Department official added that there was "no quid pro quo" for North Korea freeing the two Americans.
Their release comes just weeks after Pyongyang freed American Jeffrey Fowle, 56, a street repair worker from Miamisburg, Ohio, who was imprisoned in April after apparently leaving a Bible in a nightclub toilet in the North Korean city of Chongjin, where he was travelling as a tourist.
Bae, a Korean-American missionary, last week marked the second anniversary of his detention by the reclusive state.
The sickly 42-year-old was arrested in November 2012 and later sentenced to 15 years' hard labour for crimes against the state.