U.S. Human Rights Envoy to Visit Seoul Next Week

Washington's special envoy for North Korean human rights issues will visit South Korea and Japan this week and next.

The U.S. State Department said Monday that Robert King will arrive in Tokyo on Thursday for a three-day visit during which he will meet with senior officials and discuss North Korea's abduction of Japanese nationals decades ago.

King will then travel to Seoul from Sunday to Wednesday for a series of talks with senior South Korean officials. These will center on North Korea's human rights abuses as well as the incarceration of Korean-American Kenneth Bae, who has been held in North Korea for 18 months.