rssBill Clinton Visits North Korea to Free U.S. Journalists
Tuesday, August 04, 2009 at 9:04 am
- 13 Comments
In a surprise move first reported by South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper, former President Bill Clinton has secretly traveled to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang to plead for the release of Euna Lee and Laura Ling, the two American journalists captured by North Korean authorities and sentenced to hard labor for “spying.” No guarantees, but it might work. There’s footage of Clinton being received positively in North Korea. Glenn Kessler at The Washington Post quotes Victor Cha, a Georgetown professor and former Bush White House aide, as saying “it would be very difficult for the North not to give these people up” to someone of Clinton’s stature.
The White House press secretary, Robert Gibbs, put out a statement at 7:17 this morning saying “While this solely private mission to secure the release of two Americans is on the ground, we will have no comment. We do not want to jeopardize the success of former President Clinton’s mission.” Still, if there’s a State Department press briefing today [Update: It's scheduled for noon], President Clinton’s North Korea trip will surely dominate it. Speculation immediately turns to what else Clinton and the North Koreans will discuss — the North’s resumed bellicosity, the nuclear-weapons file, ballistic missiles. Even if Clinton has been authorized to speak only about Ling and Lee, two nations that have never had formal diplomatic relations and only ad-hoc encounters during moments of crisis — and, you know, a war — are bound to try to explore each other’s intentions on a host of other topics.
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13 Comments
Pingback posted August 4, 2009 @ 12:31 pm
[...] Bill Clinton Visits North Korea to Free US Journalists - The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted August 4, 2009 @ 3:21 pm
[...] Bill Clinton Visits North Korea to Free US Journalists - The Washington Independent [...]
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[...] Bill Clinton Visits North Korea to Free US Journalists - The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted August 4, 2009 @ 6:15 pm
[...] The Washington Independent » Bill Clinton Visits North Korea to …In a surprise move first reported by South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper, former President Bill Clinton has secretly traveled to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang to plead for the release of Euna Lee and Laura Ling, the two American … Read more [...]
Pingback posted August 4, 2009 @ 6:49 pm
[...] Here is the original post: The Washington Independent » Bill Clinton Visits North Korea to … [...]
Comment posted August 4, 2009 @ 7:33 pm
“of Clinton’s stature”….?? really? Not sure why they chose to let this man travel on a mission like this. This is why I don't get the Obama administration. What else are they hiding from us? And why didn't Hillary go? Isn't it her job? They must not like her…. which scares me to think she could have been president.
Comment posted August 4, 2009 @ 9:44 pm
I meant to add that this picture with Clinton was so close to the other picture. Seriously, I’m not sure KJI has moved. Maybe they have a wax figure for formal portraits.
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Pingback posted August 5, 2009 @ 4:24 am
[...] The Washington Independent » Bill Clinton Visits North Korea to …In a surprise move first reported by South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper, former President Bill Clinton has secretly traveled to the North Korean capital of Pyongyang to plead for the release of Euna Lee and Laura Ling, the two American …Read More [...]
Comment posted August 5, 2009 @ 3:44 am
Good on Bill Clinton for helping free those people.
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