Seoul, May 9 (TNS): North Korea is expected to release three United States detainees as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visits Wednesday, an official at the South’s presidential office said according to the Yonhap news agency.
Pompeo arrived in Pyongyang to discuss preparations for a summit between leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump on the North’s nuclear weapons.
But the three Korean-Americans detained in the North is a significant domestic political issue and Trump hinted last week of imminent news after sources said they had been relocated ahead of a possible release.
Yonhap cited a Blue House official as saying: “We expect him to bring… the captives.”
Kim Dong-Chul, a South Korea-born American pastor, has been detained in the North since 2015 when he was arrested for spying. He was sentenced to 10 years’ hard labour in 2016.
