3 Americans Detained in North Korea Coming Home

WASHINGTON  — The Latest on Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and North Korea (all times local):

8:40 a.m.

President Donald Trump says Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is on his way back from North Korea with three American detainees, saying they “seem to be in good health.”

Trump made the announcement on Twitter Wednesday, saying “Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in the air and on his way back from North Korea with the 3 wonderful gentlemen that everyone is looking so forward to meeting.”

Trump added that Pompeo had a “good meeting” with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Trump is planning a historic summit with the North Korean leader.

In another Tweet, Trump said Pompeo and the detainees will be landing at Andrews Air Force Base at 2 a.m. Thursday. He says “I will be there to greet them. Very exciting!”

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1:52 a.m.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is in North Korea to finalize plans for a historic summit between President Donald Trump and the North’s leader, Kim Jong Un.

U.S. officials say Pompeo will also be pressing North Korea for the release of three detained American citizens, whose imminent release Trump has been hinting at.

The trip is Pompeo’s second to North Korea this year. It had not been publicly disclosed when he flew out of Washington under cover of darkness late Monday aboard an Air Force 757.

Trump announced the mission Tuesday afternoon as he laid out the case for withdrawing from a landmark nuclear deal with Iran, another bitter U.S. adversary.

When the flight arrived Wednesday morning in Pyongyang, North Korean officials were on hand to greet Pompeo.