The parents of Otto Warmbier, the American college student who died in 2017 after being returned from his detention in North Korea, spoke out toay following President Trump’s defense of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un over their son’s death.
“We have been respectful during this summit process,” Fred and Cindy Warmbier said in a statement. “Now we must speak out.”
“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,” they said.
Warmbier, a Cincinnati native and University of Virginia student, was arrested in January 2016 for allegedly stealing a propaganda poster while on a tour of Pyongyang.
He was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor but later released to the United States in a vegetative state and died in June 2017.
During a press conference on Thursday in Hanoi, Vietnam, Trump tried to assure reporters that Kim wasn’t responsible for Warmbier’s harsh captivity.
“He tells me he didn’t know about it, and I take him at his word,” Trump said.
Trump told reporters that the North Korean dictator was aware of Warmbier’s case “but he knew it later.”
“And, you know, you’ve got a lot of people. Big country. Lot of people. And in those prisons and those camps, you have a lot of people,” Trump said. “And some really bad things happened to Otto. Some really bad things.”
Trump has previously said that Warmbier was “tortured beyond belief” while in prison in North Korea.
Trump faced bipartisan backlash for his apparent defense of the North Korean leader, which left Republican senators fuming.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio), who represents Warmbier’s home state, warned Trump not to be “naive” about the “brutal nature” of the North Korean regime.
“I want to make clear that we can never forget about Otto. His treatment at the hands of his captors was unforgivable and it tells us a lot about the nature of the regime,” said Portman, a member of the Foreign Relations Committee.
Sen. Bob Menendez (N.J.), the top Democrat on the Foreign Relations panel, warned that Trump’s comments do “enormous damage” to the United States’ international standing.
“He seems to find warmth with authoritarian dictatorships and believes them and their word when they have records of violating international law and human rights, [rather] than to believe our own intelligence community,” Menendez said.
Trump attempted to walk back his comments today, claiming his own words had been misinterpreted.
I never like being misinterpreted, but especially when it comes to Otto Warmbier and his great family. Remember, I got Otto out along with three others. The previous Administration did nothing, and he was taken on their watch. Of course I hold North Korea responsible….
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 1, 2019
….for Otto’s mistreatment and death. Most important, Otto Warmbier will not have died in vain. Otto and his family have become a tremendous symbol of strong passion and strength, which will last for many years into the future. I love Otto and think of him often!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 1, 2019