Michael Hernandez
01 March 2019•Update: 01 March 2019
WASHINGTON
The parents of an American student who died of injuries sustained in North Korean captivity publicly broke with President Donald Trump on Friday, blaming North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for their son's death.
"We have been respectful during this summit process. Now we must speak out," Fred and Cindy Warmbier said in a statement following Trump's second sit-down with Kim.
"Kim and his evil regime are responsible for the death of our son Otto. Kim and his evil regime are responsible for unimaginable cruelty and inhumanity. No excuses or lavish praise can change that," the Warmbiers added.
Their son, Otto Warmbier, was imprisoned in North Korea for more than a year before his release. He was sent to the U.S. in a coma-like state, dying six days after his return in June 2017.
He was sentenced to 15 years hard labor on charges tied to the theft of a propaganda poster.
Trump said in Hanoi, Vietnam, where he was meeting with Kim, that he believed the North Korean leader's denials of responsibility for Warmbier's death.
"He felt badly about it. I did speak to him. He felt very badly," Trump said as nuclear talks collapsed without progress. "I will take him at his word."
Trump's comments drew a swift backlash from Republicans and Democrats.
"We know what happened to Otto. We know what this country has done. I support the president's effort to denuclearize them, but I do not have a misbelief of who this leader is," Republican House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told reporters.
