The White House cannot confirm the validity of reports that three U.S. citizens detained in North Korea were released, press secretary Sarah Sanders said.
Some news outlets reported Wednesday that the three Americans, Kim Dong-cheol, Kim Sang-deok, and Kim Hak-seong, were freed from detention centers ahead of President Trump’s historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
“We can’t confirm the validity of any of the reports currently out about their release,” Sanders told reporters at Thursday’s White House press briefing. “We certainly would see this as a sign of goodwill if North Korea were to release the three Americans ahead of discussions between President Trump and Kim Jong Un.”
The president is expected to meet with Kim in late May or June, though a date and location have not yet been announced.
Trump suggested in a tweet Wednesday night the U.S. citizens held in a North Korean labor camp could go free and urged his followers to “stay tuned” about their release.
Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor who recently joined Trump’s legal team, also indicated the three Americans would be freed.
“We got Kim Jong Un impressed enough to be releasing three prisoners today,” Giuliani told Fox News’ “Fox and Friends” in an interview Thursday morning.
But Sanders told reporters she was not aware that Giuliani, who vowed to negotiate an end to the investigation into Russian meddling, had the authority to speak about issues like foreign policy.
When asked whether Giuliani and Jay Sekulow, another member of Trump’s legal team, were involved in efforts to secure the release of the three Americans from North Korea, Sanders responded, “Not that I’m aware of.”
“That’s a question you’d have to ask them,” she said. “I don’t speak for people on the outside.”
A senior National Security Council official told the Washington Examiner they could not “confirm the reports and have nothing to announce” regarding the U.S. citizens in North Korea.
State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told reporters Thursday afternoon the State Department couldn’t confirm reports the detainees had been released.
Gabby Morrongiello contributed to this story.
