--- title: N. Korea Detainee Kenneth Bae Urges U.S. To Help Free Him | TIME description: In a news conference, the American missionary detained in North Korea apologized for his “serious crime” and called on the U.S. to secure his release. canonical: https://time.com/video/8YVDe7Xj/ og:title: N. Korea Detainee Kenneth Bae Urges U.S. To Help Free Him og:description: In a news conference, the American missionary detained in North Korea apologized for his “serious crime” and called on the U.S. to secure his release. og:url: https://time.com/video/8YVDe7Xj/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/8YVDe7Xj/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: N. Korea Detainee Kenneth Bae Urges U.S. To Help Free Him twitter:description: In a news conference, the American missionary detained in North Korea apologized for his “serious crime” and called on the U.S. to secure his release. twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/8YVDe7Xj/poster.jpg?width=720 --- # N. Korea Detainee Kenneth Bae Urges U.S. To Help Free Him > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Subscription: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME is a general-interest news organization founded in 1923, reporting on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world. A TIME subscription provides full access to that journalism in print and digital, from $20 a year, and can be cancelled at any time. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: N. Korea Detainee Kenneth Bae Urges U.S. To Help Free Him [Watch (HLS stream): N. Korea Detainee Kenneth Bae Urges U.S. To Help Free Him](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/8YVDe7Xj.m3u8) (1:36)  _Published 2014-01-20. In a news conference, the American missionary detained in North Korea apologized for his “serious crime” and called on the U.S. to secure his release._ --- Jul 27, 2023 4:08 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [U.S. Secures Release Of The Soldier Who Crossed Into North Korea In July](/video/d3mDecKV/) ### U.S. Secures Release Of The Soldier Who Crossed Into North Korea In July [President Trump Welcomes U.S. Detainees Freed from North Korea Home](/video/LvY9BDc0/) ### President Trump Welcomes U.S. Detainees Freed from North Korea Home [North Korea Detains a Fourth U.S. Citizen](/video/LASEs4y4/) ### North Korea Detains a Fourth U.S. Citizen --- ## Transcript >> The American missionary detained in North Korea has appealed to the US for help. Kenneth Bae was arrested in November 2012 while leading a tour group in the country. He was sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for committing what North Korean officials described as hostile acts against the state. In a news conference, Monday, Bae apologized for what he called a serious crime against North Korea and asked the US to secure his release. He is currently suffering from poor health including complications with his Diabetes and severe back pain. Prompting the US State department to make repeated calls for release on humanitarian grounds. In August, a US convoy was due to travel to Pyongyang to discuss Bae's release but North Korea called off the visit at the last minute, citing hostility from the US. Bae said, he asked to hold the news conference though many analysts are skeptical noting North Korea has coerced detainees into giving similar apologies in the past. Most recently, Merrill Newman, another American detained in North Korea apologized for committing war crimes in a video tape statement. He was released soon after and later told reporters; he was forced to give the confession. As for Bae, he was in the news earlier this month during ex- NBA star, Dennis Rodman's trip to the hermit kingdom. In an interview, Rodman suggested Bae was to blame for his own imprisonment. >> If you understand what Kenneth Bae did-- >> Yeah. >> You understand what he did in-- >> What did he do? You tell me. >> In this country. >> You tell me. What did he do? >> And no, no, no, don't. You tell me. You tell me. >> Rodman later apologized. During his news conference, Bae said he was in good health and has been receiving treatments at a hospital. For Time, I'm Christian Bryan. ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"N. 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