US Vice President Mike Pence has met with Fred Warmbier, the father of the late Otto Warmbier, in South Korea ahead of the Winter Olympics.
Pence revealed last week that he had invited Warmbier to attend the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang on Friday as his personal guest.
Warmbier’s son Otto was the University of Virginia student from Ohio who was held in North Korean custody for 17 months for allegedly stealing a propaganda poster.
US Vice President Mike Pence has met with Fred Warmbier – the father of the late Otto Warmbier – in South Korea ahead of the Winter Olympics
Officials said Otto mysteriously suffered brain damage before he was returned to the US last year and died just days later.
Warmbier’s trip coincides with Pence’s visit to fight North Korea’s propaganda efforts and keep up pressure to halt its nuclear ambitions.
Pence and Warmbier were pictured together at the Navy’s 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, South Korea on Friday where they met with several North Korean defectors.
Warmbier hugged one defector, Ji Seong-ho, tightly after they met. Ji Seong-ho received a standing ovation when he appeared at President Trump’s State of the Union address.
The North has denied mistreating Otto, although what caused his death remains a mystery, and Pence’s decision to bring his father to the games is sure to be seen in Pyongyang as a very provocative move.
Pence and Warmbier were pictured together at the Navy’s 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, South Korea on Friday where they met with several North Korean defectors
Warmbier hugged one defector, Ji Seong-ho, tightly after they met. Fred is in South Korea after being invited as Pence’s guest to the opening ceremony
North Korea has already said it is not interested in meeting Pence while he is in South Korea.
Washington has been stepping up its anti-Pyongyang rhetoric while North Korea has been trying to use the Olympics as an opportunity to ease tensions with South Korea.
Some see Pyongyang’s conciliatory gestures toward Seoul as a calculated move to drive a wedge between the US and its ally.
If that’s the case, it may already be paying off for Kim Jong Un.
In response to a North Korean request, Seoul has agreed to postpone annual military maneuvers with the US until after the games are over and has asked for some sanctions to be waived so that more contacts and exchanges with the North can be made.
Pence, meanwhile, is taking a decidedly hard-line approach.
Warmbier’s son Otto was the University of Virginia student from Ohio who was held in North Korean custody for 17 months for allegedly stealing a propaganda poster
Officials said Otto mysteriously suffered brain damage before he was returned to the US (above being carried off a plane) last year and died just days later
Fred and Cindy Warmbier were special guests at President Trump’s State of the Union address
Before departing for South Korea, he announced the US would unveil in the coming days ‘the toughest and most aggressive round of economic sanctions on North Korea ever.’
Pyongyang is already the subject of wide-ranging sanctions and details of what the US might target next have yet to be announced.
It comes after Otto’s parents Fred and Cindy were guests at President Trump’s State of the Union address last week.
‘This wonderful man was arrested and charged with crimes against the state,’ Trump said during his address while recalling Otto’s story.
‘After a shameful trial, the dictatorship sentenced Otto to 15 years of hard labor, before returning him to America last June – horribly injured and on the verge of death. He passed away just days after his return.’
Trump, speaking directly to the Warmbier family, said: ‘You are powerful witnesses to a menace that threatens our world, and your strength inspires us all.
‘Tonight, we pledge to honor Otto’s memory with American resolve.
Following a length standing ovation for Otto’s parents, Trump said: ‘Special people.’