(Time)
The parents of Otto Warmbier, the U.S. citizen who died in 2017 after being imprisoned by North Korea, issued a stinging rebuke Friday after President Donald Trump’s defense of dictator Kim Jong Un.
“We have been respectful during this summit process. Now we must speak out. Kim and his evil regime are responsible for the death of our son Otto,” Fred and Cindy Warmbier said in a statement. “Kim and his evil regime are responsible for unimaginable cruelty and inhumanity. No excuses or lavish praise can change that.”
Their statement came one day after Trump’s summit with Kim in Vietnam. In response to a question at a press conference, Trump said he believed Kim when the North Korean leader said he knew nothing about Warmbier’s imprisonment.
“He tells me that he didn’t know about it and I will take him at his word,” Trump said. Kim “felt badly about it,” he added. “He felt very badly.”
Trump responded to the Warmbiers’ criticism on Friday afternoon, saying his comments had been “misinterpreted.” Read more