The US military is attempting to determine the fate of an American soldier who made an unauthorised crossing of the border from South to North Korea, putting Washington into a new crisis in its dealing with the nuclear-armed state.
The US Army identified the soldier as Private Travis T King who joined in 2021 and was facing disciplinary action.
While on an orientation tour of the Joint Security Area (JSA) on the border between the two Koreas, Private King crossed into North Korea yesterday "wilfully and without authorisation," US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said.
"We believe that he is in (North Korean) custody and so we're closely monitoring and investigating the situation and working to notify the soldier's next of kin," Mr Austin added.
North Korea's state media has made no mention of the incident. Its mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The crossing comes at a time of renewed tension on the Korean peninsula, with the arrival yesterday of a US nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine, and the test launch early today of two ballistic missiles into the sea by North Korea.
The short-range missiles were fired from an area near its capital, Pyongyang, flying 550km and 600km before entering the sea off its east coast, South Korea's military said.
North Korea has been testing increasingly powerful missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, including a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile last week.
The UN Command (UNC), which oversees security for the border area, had communicated over a hotline with the North Koreans about the American soldier, a spokesperson for US Forces Korea said.
The US military is "working with our KPA counterparts to resolve this incident," Colonel Isaac Taylor said, referring to North Korea's People's Army.
"We communicate with the North Koreans every single day," he said. "It's all part of the armistice agreement."
One witness described how she heard an American soldier shouted "get him" as he ran for the frontier
One witness described how she heard an American soldier shouting "get him" as Private King ran for the frontier, saying she "assumed it was some kind of stunt".
Solider's motive for entering North Korea unknown
The soldier was on a tour of the Panmunjom truce village when he crossed the Military Demarcation Line that has separated the two Koreas since their war ended in 1953 with an armistice, US officials said.
His motive is not known. While based in South Korea, he faced accusations of assault and damaging a police car in an October incident. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced in February to a fine, a court document seen by Reuters showed.
Private King had finished serving in military detention and was transported by the US military to the airport to return to his home unit in the United States, two US officials said.
He had passed alone through security to his gate and then fled, one official said.
Civilian tours of the demilitarised zone (DMZ) are advertised at the airport and Private King appeared to have decided to join one, an official said.
The US officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the soldier had been due to face disciplinary action by the military. It is not clear if that was related to the October incident.
South Korea's Unification Ministry, which handles ties with the North, said all tours to Panmunjom had been cancelled indefinitely at the UN Command's request.
But Imjingak in Paju that marks the end of the road before the military-controlled bridge leading into the DMZ was busy with tourists.
It is unclear how long North Korean authorities will hold the soldier but analysts say it could be valuable propaganda for the isolated country.
The border incident occurred as senior South Korean and US officials held the first round of talks yesterday on upgrading coordination in the event of a nuclear war with North Korea.
The United States has pledged to deploy more strategic assets such as aircraft carriers, submarines and long-range bombers to South Korea, drawing an angry response from Pyongyang which vowed to escalate its own response.
A former North Korean diplomat who defected to the South said Private King may be a propaganda tool for North Korea and a loss of face for the US on the day of the arrival of the submarine and the nuclear talks.
"But looking at previous cases of US servicemen who went into the North, holding an American soldier is probably a not very cost-effective headache for the North in the long run," said Tae Yong-ho, who is a member of South Korea's parliament.
Soldier bolted into North Korea - witness
American and South Korean guards shouted "get him" as they scrambled unsuccessfully to stop Private King from running into North Korea, a New Zealand woman who was on the same tour to the border area said.
"It all happened pretty quickly," according to Sarah Leslie, who was in the area with 40 other tourists who were walking around and taking photos in the moments before the solider made a dash for the border.
The group had just left one of the iconic blue buildings that straddles the frontier and is used for negotiations between the two Koreas, when Mr King suddenly ran between the structures toward the North, she said.
"Someone ran close to me very fast and I thought, 'What is going on?'
"I don't think anyone who was sane would want to go to North Korea, so I assumed it was some kind of stunt."
Private King was wearing jeans, a black shirt and a black hat with the letters "DMZ" printed on it, Ms Leslie added.
"I probably only saw him running for like a few seconds and that's all it would have taken to get across the border."
One American soldier shouted "get him," and other American and South Korean guards ran after Private King, but he was already on the north side of the border, she said.
He disappeared from sight, she added, and she did not see him enter any buildings or be detained by North Korean guards.
The guards then quickly herded the rest of the group into a building and onto a bus to leave the area, she said.
"I can't think why anyone would want to do that. You could get shot crossing the line ... It was quite frantic."
