The North Korean government cancelled a meeting planned for a United States envoy to fly to Asia over the weekend to discuss the potential release of Kenneth Bae-an American currently imprisoned for allegedly plotting to overthrow the government in Pyongyang.
U.S. special envoy for human rights issues in North Korea Robert King was slated to arrive in North Korea on Friday, in hopes of returning with Bae in tow.
"We are surprised and disappointed by North Korea's decision," Marie Harf, State Department spokesperson, wrote in a statement to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. "We remain gravely concerned about Mr. Bae's health and we continue to urge the DPRK authorities to grant Mr. Bae special amnesty and immediate release on humanitarian grounds."
44-year-old Bae has been in custody of the North Korean government since November 2012. He worked as a tour operator in China prior to his arrest.
Pyongyang courts convicted Bae of "hostile acts," including planning to overthrow the government-a crime that is punishable by death.
Since then, Bae has reportedly been held at a North Korean labor camp.
When he was first indicted, North Korean officials said that the American fessed up about his plans to infiltrate the state.
"In the process of investigation he admitted that he committed crimes aimed to topple the DPRK with hostility toward it," state-run Korean Central News Agency reported. "His crimes were proved by evidence."
They did not specify what evidence in particular proved his guilt.
Should the U.S. have sent Dennis Rodman in to settle the score?
Two months ago, the former NBA forward said that he deserved a Nobel Peace Prize for reaching out to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during a VICE documentary that followed Rodman and the Harlem Globetrotters to Pyongyang.
"I've called on the Supreme Leader to do me a solid by releasing Kenneth Bae," he told Sports Illustrated. "My mission is to break the ice between hostile countries. Why it's been left to me to smooth things over, I don't know...But I'll tell you this: If I don't finish in the top three for the next Nobel Peace Prize, something's seriously wrong."
