Ohio Sen. Rob Portman Secretly Lobbied North Korea For Warmbier's Release
BACK-DOOR
“I feel like I did not succeed in getting him home,” he said.
Andrew Kelly/Reuters
Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) said Wednesday that he secretly met with North Korea’s United Nations delegation last December to lobby for the release of Otto Warmbier, who grew up near Cincinnati. The senator told his constituents he brought photos of Warmbier to the meeting and asked the North Korean government to allow the Swedish ambassador to meet with the detained 22-year-old student. Portman said he continued to reach out in the months following the New York meeting. Warmbier was released last week and returned home to Ohio, but died on Monday.
