Before Trump: 6 past high-level US visits to North Korea

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Madeleine Albright is the highest-level U.S. official to visit North Korea while in office. As secretary of state, she met in October 2000 with leader Kim Jong Il, the father of the current leader. They discussed topics from missiles and terrorism to human rights. Albright’s visit pushed U.S.-North Korea relations in a positive direction.

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CLINTON’S SURPRISE

On August 4, 2009, former President Bill Clinton arrived unannounced in North Korea on a mission to free two detained American journalists, Laura Ling and Euna Lee. His visit came at a time when tensions were high over North Korea’s nuclear program. Then-leader Kim Jong Il granted a “special pardon,” freeing the two jailed journalists after he and Clinton held talks.

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CARTER RETURNS — TWICE

Carter returned in August 2010 to bring home a jailed Bostonian, Aijalon Gomes, who had entered the communist country illegally from China. He had been sentenced to eight years of hard labour in prison. In April 2011, Carter arrived in Pyongyang again, this time with other former world leaders to discuss a food shortage in the country and to try to restart talks to persuade North Korea to abandon its nuclear ambitions.

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OTTO WARMBIER

Most recently, Joseph Yun, then the U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, travelled to North Korea in June 2017 to try to bring home an imprisoned American college student, Otto Warmbier. Yun was able to secure Warmbier’s release, but he was comatose and died shortly after his return to America.

Haruka Nuga, The Associated Press