North Korea has record of using detained Americans to extract high-profile visits from US, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations
Republican and Democratic U. S. congressmen introduced a bill on Thursday that would ban Americans from traveling to North Korea as tourists and require them to obtain special permission for other types of visits.
Democrat Adam Schiff and Republican Joe Wilson said their proposed North Korea Travel Control Act followed the detention of at least 17 Americans in North Korea in the past decade.
North Korea has a record of using detained Americans to extract high-profile visits from the United States, with which it has no formal diplomatic relations.
“With increased tensions in North Korea, the danger that Americans will be detained for political reasons is greater than ever, ” the congressmen said in a statement.
North Korea holding four Americans
Given North Korea’s “demonstrated willingness to use American visitors as bargaining chips to extract high level meetings or concessions, it is appropriate for the United States to take steps to control travel to a nation that poses a real and present danger to American interests, ” they said.
