BEIJING _ North Korean authorities have reportedly detained a U.S. citizen, raising the number of Americans known to be detained in North Korea to three and potentially deepening animosity between Washington and Pyongyang at an already tense time.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency, which first reported the detention Sunday, identified the man as a Korean-American in his late 50s with the surname Kim. North Korean authorities detained him at Pyongyang International Airport on his way out of the country Saturday, the agency reported, citing unidentified sources. The reason for his detention was unknown.
The man is a former professor at the Yanbian University of Science and Technology, a research university in China's Jilin province, which borders North Korea. He was in the country for about a month "to discuss relief activities," Yonhap reported.
The agency said South Korea's national intelligence agency was unaware of the detention.
Martina Aberg, deputy head of mission for the Swedish Embassy in North Korea, confirmed the detention to CNN Sunday. "We have been informed and can confirm that there has been a detention of a U.S. citizen Saturday morning local," she said. "He was prevented from getting on the flight out of Pyongyang. We don't comment further than this."
In the absence of a U.S. embassy in North Korea, Sweden handles consular matters involving U.S. citizens there.
The State Department said Sunday that it was "aware of reports that a U.S. citizen was detained in North Korea," and that it was working with the Swedish Embassy. The department said in a statement that it would not comment further because of "privacy considerations."
North Korea is working to develop nuclear-tipped missiles that could reach the U.S., and analysts say it could soon conduct its sixth nuclear test. The U.S., in response to rising tension, sent the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson toward the Korean peninsula. It is expected to arrive later this week.
More than 10 U.S. citizens have been detained in North Korea since 2009, according to Yonhap. Two remain in the country; others have been released after visits to Pyongyang by prominent Americans.
In March, 2016, North Korea sentenced Otto Warmbier, a University of Virginia student, to 15 years of labor for attempting to steal a propaganda poster from his hotel. He had been in North Korea as a tourist, on a five-day visit.
North Korean state media accused him of entering the country with the intent of "bringing down the foundation of its single-minded unity."
The next month, North Korea sentenced Kim Dong Chul, a South Korean-born naturalized American citizen, to 10 years' hard labor for espionage.
A Canadian pastor, Hyeon Soo Lim, has also been held in the country since early 2015.
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(Times staff writer Tracy Wilkinson in Washington contributed to this report.)
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