U.S. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence were among those greeting three Americans freed from detention in North Korea when they arrived early Thursday at Joint Base Andrews just outside of Washington.
The president, vice president and their wives, along with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo walked onto the tarmac to greet the men. The president and first lady boarded the C-40 and met privately with the men.
“It’ll be quite a scene,” predicted Trump, saying their return is “very exciting” because “it represents something very important to this country, people never thought a thing like this could happen.”
The president arrived with the first lady and National Security Adviser John Bolton and Press Secretary Sarah Sanders.
The helicopter carrying the vice president arrived ahead of Marine One, the president’s helicopter. Then the U.S. Air Force jet carrying Pompeo arrived, followed by the plan carrying the three freed Americans.
The Korean-Americans left North Korea on a plane with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo then transferred to a different plane during a stop in Japan.
Tony Kim and Kim Hak Song were teaching at the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology when they were separately detained in 2017, accused of participating in anti-state activities and trying to overthrow the government.
The third detainee, Kim Dong Chul, was arrested in Rason on the northeast tip of North Korea in October 2015 and sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor the following year after being convicted of espionage.
The three will be taken to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, for further evaluation and medical treatment, a White House official said.
WATCH: Trump on being at airport to greet freed hostages
In a joint statement released by the State Department late Wednesday, the three men expressed “deep appreciation to the United States government, President Trump, Secretary Pompeo, and the people of the United States” for their return.
While in North Korea, Pompeo met with leader Kim Jong Un for 90 minutes, their second such meeting in little more than a month as Trump and Kim prepare for their summit.
Trump told reporters at the White House Wednesday the date and location of the summit would be announced within three days, but that it will not occur at the Korean Demilitarized Zone as he had previously suggested as a possible venue.
Trump termed current U.S. communication with Pyongyang as “serious and positive” and expressed his appreciation to Kim for releasing the Americans to Pompeo.
The Wall Street Journal reported later Wednesday that it appeared Singapore would be the likely summit site.
Asked if the unprecedented summit between an American president and a North Korean leader might be scuttled, Trump replied “everything can be scuttled.”
Trump has said the goal is for North Korea to agree to denuclearize.
On Wednesday, Trump said “we have a chance that something really great for the world and great for North Korea” could be achieved.
Released Americans
A senior U.S. official present for the exchange of detainees in Pyongyang told journalists traveling with Pompeo that a North Korean official informed the secretary of state that Kim had granted amnesties to the three Americans.
The released men were brought to the secretary’s aircraft and were “able to walk on the plane without assistance,” according to a White House statement.
Shortly after they touched down on American soil in Alaska — for a refueling stop Wednesday afternoon — the State Department released a statement from the freed men.
“We would like to express our deep appreciation to the United States government, President Trump, Secretary Pompeo, and the people of the United States for bringing us home,” they said. “We thank God, and all our families and friends who prayed for us and for our return. God Bless America, the greatest nation in the world.”
A U.S. official who participated in the latest talks in Pyongyang said substantial progress was made in planning for the summit and “we also agreed to meet again in person to finalize the details.”
Pompeo told reporters traveling with him that holding such a summit would have been more difficult had the Americans still been detained.
“For decades, we have been adversaries,” Pompeo added. “Now we are hopeful that we can work together to resolve this conflict, take away threats to the world and make your country have all the opportunities your people so richly deserve.”
Vice President Pence, in a statement said that while the Trump administration “is encouraged that North Korea freed these innocent hostages, we will not let off the pressure until we achieve full denuclearization.”
White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters Wednesday afternoon that “the maximum pressure campaign has worked, adding that in addition to the president’s efforts “some of that success is due to our allies and partners,” especially the leaders of China, Japan and South Korea.
Summit concerns
Some members of Congress, while applauding the release of the three Americans, are expressing concern about the upcoming Trump-Kim summit.
“Releasing detainees is the easy part; the difficult part will be reaching an agreement with the North Koreans that establishes a strong verification regime that can ensure genuine denuclearization,” said a statement from House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer.
“Congress has yet to see a concrete strategy from the president as to how he intends to avoid giving Mr. Kim a propaganda victory without securing the kind of verifiable commitment on denuclearization necessary for any summit to be a success.”
Republican Senator Bob Corker said he is thankful for the release of the American who were unjustly detained.
“We must approach North Korea’s recent overtures and the potential for talks over denuclearization with great caution, and I believe the administration fully understands that and is preparing in the appropriate way,” said the foreign relations committee chairman in a statement. “The committee will conduct appropriate oversight as the discussions with North Korea continue.”
The removal of tens of thousands of U.S. military personnel from the Korean Peninsula will not be on the table for the Trump-Kim talks, according to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
Testifying before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Wednesday, the defense secretary described the U.S. forces in South Korea as a stabilizing presence for the entire region.
“And this I would just say resonates among allies and not just in Japan and Korea because those forces are in the Northwest Pacific, but also around the world when they see that when trouble looms, we don’t walk away,” Mattis said.
Nike Ching at the State Department contributed to this report.
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