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North Korea says imprisoned American tried to become 'second Snowden' By James Pearson SEOUL Fri Sep 19, 2014 8:10pm EDT (Reuters) - An American recently sentenced to six years hard labor by a North Korean court pretended to have secret U.S. information and was deliberately arrested in a bid to become famous and meet U.S. missionary Kenneth Bae in a North Korean prison, state media said on Saturday. Matthew Miller, 25, of Bakersfield, California, had prepared his story in advance and written in a notebook that he was seeking refuge after failing in an attempt to collect information about the...

After a year in the North Korean prison, Kenneth Bae softened toward his guards. “There were many small conversations like, 'How much do you make in the United States? What's it like to live in the U.S.?” Bae told KUOW’s Kim Malcolm. “Do people really have houses and cars?” When he told his captors about life in America, the guards were shocked. “They said, ‘No way. No way most common people can live like that,’” he said. “They were told that 1 percent of people in the United States have everything, and the rest of them are living in poverty....

White House: No diplomatic outreach in Clapper’s visit to North Korea By Kyle Balluck - 11/09/14 06:30 AM EST Director of National Intelligence James Clapper went to North Korea with the “sole purpose” of obtaining the release of Americans Kenneth Bae and Matthew Todd Miller, according to a senior administration official. The official spoke to reporters traveling with President Obama early Sunday morning before Air Force One took off for the president’s Asia trip. “It was not to pursue any diplomatic opening,” the official said, according to a pool reporter, adding that Clapper was selected for the secret mission because...

SEATTLE — A U.S. citizen detained in North Korea for 15 months has been returned to a labor camp, prompting worries about his health, his sister said Friday. Kenneth Bae, who led tour groups in North Korea, was arrested in late 2012 and sentenced to 15 years hard labor for unspecified hostile acts. Calls for his release on humanitarian grounds have gone unanswered. After he lost 50 pounds, he was moved last summer to a hospital from a prison work camp where he had been farming vegetables.

Former NBA player Dennis Rodman expressed his regret over controversial comments he made regarding imprisoned Christian missionary Kenneth Bae in North Korea, blaming them on drinking and stress. "I want to apologize. I take full responsibility for my actions," Rodman said on Thursday through his publicist Jules Feiler in an email to The Associated Press. "It had been a very stressful day. Some of my teammates were leaving because of pressure from their families and business associates. My dreams of basketball diplomacy was quickly falling apart. I had been drinking. It's not an excuse but by the time the interview...

WASHINGTON — For those who held onto slim hope that former NBA player Dennis Rodman might help secure the release of an American held in a North Korea prison camp, Rodman’s outburst of regime propaganda today demonstrated he knows or cares little about Kenneth Bae.“Are you going to take an opportunity, if you get it, to speak up for the family of Kenneth Bae and say, ‘Let us know why this man is being held?’ If you can help them, will you take the opportunity?” CNN’s Chris Cuomo asked.“The one thing about politics, Kenneth Bae did one thing. If...

The White House confirmed on Monday that former U.S. President Jimmy Carter is traveling to North Korea, but sought to distance itself from his visit, calling it a “private trip.” … Carter had previously announced that he was planning on traveling to North Korea in an effort to secure the release of American citizen Kenneth Bae, who is being held by the regime. …