Mother of US soldier being held in North Korea says she ‘just wants him to come home’
The mother of an American soldier who is believed to be in custody in North Korea says she just “wants her son to come home”.
Private Second Class Travis T. King was reportedly facing disciplinary action by the US military when he crossed into the secretive country, US officials said.
His mother Claudine Gates of Racine, Wisconsin, said she was shocked when she heard her son was in North Korea.
“I can’t see Travis doing anything like that,” she told ABC News
Ms Gates said that the Army told her on Tuesday morning that her son had crossed into the North, adding that she last heard from her son “a few days ago,” when he told her would return soon to his base in Fort Bliss.
She went on to say that she just wants “him to come home”.
The crossing has created a fresh crisis for Washington in its dealings with the nuclear-armed state.
King crossed after joining an orientation tour of the Joint Security Area, which is part of the 160-mile demilitarised zone separating South and North Korea.
The US Army said the soldier “wilfully and without authorisation crossed the Military Demarcation Line into the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)”.
The man was with a group of visitors, including civilians, to the Panmunjom truce village when he suddenly bolted over the brick line marking the border, South Korean media reported, citing South Korean army sources.
Two US officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the soldier had been due to face disciplinary action by the US military.
However, the officials also told Reuters it was not clear why the soldier fled to North Korea.
He had finished serving time in detention in South Korea for breaking an unspecified rule and was returning to his home unit in the US, two officials said.
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The soldier was not in US military custody at the time he decided to flee, one official said, and it appeared he made a surprise decision to join the civilian tour to the demilitarised zone.
It was unclear for how long North Korean authorities would hold the soldier but analysts said the incident could be valuable propaganda for the isolated country.
The US bans its citizens from entering North Korea – the notorious totalitarian state run by Kim Jong Un where millions live in hunger and poverty.
“Historically, the North holds these folks for weeks, if not months, for propaganda purposes, especially if this is a US soldier, before a coerced confession and apology,” said Victor Cha, a former US official and Korea expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“It also sometimes requires an American official or ex-official to travel there to obtain the release,” he added.
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US serviceman ‘wilfully’ entered North Korea
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told a news briefing in an update: “There’s a lot that we’re still trying to learn.
“We believe that he is in (North Korean) custody and so we’re closely monitoring and investigating the situation and working to notify the soldier’s next of kin.”
Mr Austin has also said his “foremost concern” is the soldier’s welfare.
Meanwhile, White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said US officials at the Pentagon, the State Department and the United Nations were all working to “to ascertain more information and resolve this situation.”
“We’re in the early stages,” she said, adding that the primary concern was determining the wellbeing of the soldier.
South and North Korean forces face each other at the Joint Security Area and it’s often used for diplomatic meetings between the two countries.
It is also a popular tourist spot.
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N Korea’s latest missile launch
The soldier’s crossing comes at a time of high tensions on the Korean peninsula, with the arrival of a US nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine in South Korea for a rare visit.
The move is seen as a warning to North Korea over its own military activities. It has been testing increasingly powerful missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, including a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile launched last week.
It fired another ballistic missile into the sea near Japan on Tuesday, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported, citing South Korea’s military.
Xi Jinping hailed the “great regeneration of China” as he hosted Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un for Beijing’s biggest ever military parade.
The three leaders, who have been labelled the “axis of upheaval”, watched on as troops, tanks, and other military hardware put on a show of force in the Chinese capital.
Follow live updates from Beijing
After being flanked by his Russian and North Korean counterparts as they emerged together at the start of the ceremony, Mr Xi paid tribute to his country’s soldiers who fought “the Japanese invaders” during World War Two.
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Xi, Putin, and Kim walk out for parade
Xi: We will defend our sovereignty
The parade marked the 80th anniversary of Japan’s defeat, which brought the conflict to an end.
“It is an important part of our history, and we made our contribution to saving the people, defending peace, and ensuring victory,” Mr Xi said.
He called on countries to “look after each other” to “avoid the repetition of tragedy”, before declaring China would “accelerate our development and defend our national integrity and sovereignty”.
Mr Putin and Mr Kim represent two of the Chinese president’s closest allies, with both leaning heavily on Beijing for trade – the former especially reliant since being ostracised by the West over the war in Ukraine.
Tens of thousands of troops took part in the parade. Pic: Reuters
Trump sends a message
Donald Trump’s attempts to smooth over US-Russia relations, and bring an end to that conflict, have so far not achieved anything significant.
Posting on Truth Social as soldiers marched through Tiananmen Square, the US president suggested China and its allies were conspiring against Washington.
“May President Xi and the wonderful people of China have a great and lasting day of celebration,” he said.
“Please give my warmest regards to Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong Un, as you conspire against the United States.”
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‘China needs us more than we need them’
For Mr Xi, the parade was a chance not just to commemorate its role in World War Two, but to showcase itself as a significant alternative to a postwar world order dominated by the US.
Mr Trump’s isolationist foreign policy, including cuts to overseas aid, has – according to his critics – given China a tantalising opportunity to flex its muscle.
Concerns remain about whether Beijing may one day make a move on Taiwan, while other nations – notably India – become more drawn into its trade orbit due to Mr Trump’s aggressive tariffs.
The parade came after an economic summit in Beijing, with Indian PM Narendra Modi among the attendees.
Hardware including tanks and fighter jets were on show. Pic: Reuters
China could pose ‘huge threat’ to US
Philip Shetler-Jones, a senior research fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, told Sky News that China’s impressive military – if allied with Russia’s – could “pose a huge threat to American forces” in the Pacific.
“In Japan particularly, people are quite mindful there are joint exercises between Chinese and Russian forces using nuclear-capable bombers, ships, and more recently submarines,” he said.
“I think the intention is to imply that if it came to full-scale conflict involving the US, then China would expect to have collaboration with Russia – and perhaps North Korea as well.”
The alleged GPS jamming of a plane carrying Ursula von der Leyen by Russia raises concerns about air travel – but were there politics at play?
Jamming can overwhelm an aircraft’s GPS navigation systems, preventing them from working properly, leaving pilots to rely on other ways of finding out where they are.
The EU chief’s aircraft was reportedly forced to land at a Bulgarian airport using ‘paper maps’ – after circling for an hour on Sunday.
The EU said there was GPS jamming but the plane was able to land safely, adding: “We have received information from Bulgarian authorities that they suspect this blatant interference was carried out by Russia.”
But the timing of the allegation of GPS jamming – something reported to be routine along the Russian border – days before a crucial meeting of European leaders to discuss peacekeeping troops for Ukraine raises the question of why now?
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Explained: How GPS jamming works
Sky News has spoken to a pilot who was flying in the same area as Ms von der Leyen on Sunday, as well as a security expert with extensive knowledge of electronic warfare, to try and work out what happened.
What is GPS jamming?
GPS interference has become a known and widespread issue affecting aircraft over Europe in recent years, particularly since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022.
Experts generally point the finger at Russia, saying that Moscow uses GPS interference to defend against Ukrainian drones but maybe also to cause a nuisance for the West.
Jamming can overwhelm an aircraft’s GPS navigation systems, preventing them from working properly, leaving pilots to rely on other ways of finding out where they are.
Read more: How 1,500 flights a day are reportedly GPS jammed
A plane transporting Ursula von der Leyen and her staff on Sunday. Pic: Reuters
What happened to Ursula von der Leyen?
According to the Financial Times, the ‘attack’ disabled GPS navigation services at Plovdiv airport in Bulgaria on Sunday afternoon.
The aircraft was deprived of electronic navigational aids as it approached, the newspaper said. It circled the airport for an hour before the pilot decided to manually land the plane, apparently using paper maps.
The area is near a known hotspot for GPS interference and blame was quickly levelled at Russia – a claim that Moscow denied. Russia has denied other instances of GPS jamming in the past.
NATO chief Mark Rutte said the alliance takes the jamming of GPS signals “very seriously” and is working “day and night” to prevent that jamming, to ensure “they will not do it again”.
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Pilot: Airport is in a known GPS interference area
Sean Fitzpatrick is an experienced pilot who regularly flies through areas known for GPS interference. Indeed, he flew within 40 miles of Plovdiv airport on the same day as Ms Von der Leyen.
He told Sky News: “That airport is in a known GPS interference area. Anyone flying in there would know that there’s a high probability of having GPS issues.”
While GPS jamming is a nuisance, pilots essentially turn off GPS receivers and rely on other aids like the instrument landing system, Sean said.
He added: “When I heard they were pulling out paper charts (to navigate) I’m like, why didn’t they just have an iPad?”
Given that GPS jamming of flights near the Russian border is reported to be routine, Sean was asked if the choice to reveal this particular alleged incident to the media – so close to the coalition of the willing summit this week – was political.
“Based on the information I have, that’s what it looks like… Based on what I’ve seen and the information that’s available to the public and what I know as a professional… I think there’s a bit of politics and sensationalism.”
A map of GPS interference levels detected over Europe earlier this year. Credit: GPSjam.org
‘We can make your life difficult’
Dr Thomas Withington, an expert on electronic warfare at the RUSI thinktank, agreed that there could be political angles to what happened.
“I think it’s quite hard to say with any degree of certainty whether her aircraft was deliberately targeted,” he told Sky News, noting that jamming signals are often sent out over a wide area. “But I’m sure that for Mr Putin it’s a very happy coincidence.”
He added: “Politically, what you’re saying is ‘we’re here, we can make your life difficult’.”
He also spoke about the wider impact of GPS jamming – and the possible dangers.
“I think it is important that the news went out there, because I think it indicates that Russia is an irresponsible actor, and these actions are grossly irresponsible, because you’re attempting to create a danger to international air travel, and there is simply no justification for that.”
He referenced the Azerbaijan Airlines flight in December, which was reportedly GPS jammed before it was mistakenly shot down by Russian air defences, killing 38 people.
“If those (Russian) actions cause loss of life, particularly in a NATO nation, I think it should be made very clear that a military response would be considered for that.”
World
French actor Gerard Depardieu to face trial over alleged rape and sexual assault of fellow actor
French actor Gerard Depardieu has been summoned to face trial in Paris over allegations of rape and sexual assault against actress Charlotte Arnould.
“I feel relieved,” Ms Arnould wrote on Instagram after receiving the judge’s indictment order.
“The order restores a form of judicial truth. I think I’m having trouble realising how huge this is.”
Charlotte Arnould. Pic: Reuters
Ms Arnould’s lawyer, Carine Durrieu-Diebolt, told French outlet Franceinfo she was “extremely satisfied” and said the decision was a “moment of judicial truth in this case”.
In 2018, prosecutors in Paris opened a preliminary investigation after Ms Arnould accused Depardieu of raping her at his home. He has denied wrongdoing.
“The acts of rape and sexual assault have been acknowledged,” Ms Arnould said. “Now, we await the next steps.”
Last year, prosecutors submitted a request for the case to proceed to trial.
Earlier this year, Depardieu was convicted of sexually assaulting two women on a film set and received an 18-month suspended prison sentence.
The 76-year-old was convicted of groping a 34-year-old assistant and a 54-year-old woman responsible for decorating the set during the filming of Les Volets Verts (The Green Shutters) in 2021.
The court ordered his name to be listed in the national sex offender database.
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Depardieu, one of the most prominent figures in French cinema for decades, told the court his career includes more than 250 films.
In 1991, he was nominated for an Oscar for his performance as the swordsman and poet Cyrano de Bergerac.
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In recent years, Depardieu has been accused of misconduct, either publicly or in formal complaints, by more than 20 women.
So far, only the sexual assault case has proceeded to court, with other cases dropped over a lack of evidence or an expired statute of limitations.
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