hankyoreh

James Dresnok, a U.S. Army deserter who fled to North Korea, will be introduced to the U.S. public on January 28 for the first time via a televised interview, after 44 years of living in the communist country. Dresnok is the last U.S. citizen confirmed to be staying in the North.

The U.S. news show "60 Minutes" will air a part of an interview with Dresnok which was part of a documentary film, "Crossing the Line," presented at this year's Sundance Film Festival.

In a preview clip of the interview, Dresnok, 66, said that he feels comfortable in North Korea, even if the U.S. describes the nation as a part of the "axis of evil."

Even if there is an offer of gold worth billions of dollars, Dresnok says in the interview, he will not leave North Korea. He says that he is comfortable and would not exchange his life in Pyongyang with anything else. Regarding Charles Jenkins, who knew Dresnok, left North Korea two years ago and is speaking ill of conditions in the North, Dresnok said that Jenkins was lying.

Dresnok deserted the Army at age 21 in August 1962 when he was serving for the United States Forces in Korea. He reportedly became a member of the North Korean Workers' Party after he starred in a film cast by none other than current North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. The film, "Nameless Heroes," was actually a 20-part installment series made in 1978, wherein Dresnok played the role of a malicious U.S. Army captain.

Out of four U.S. Army deserters who crossed the Demilitarized Zone in the early 1960s, two have already passed away of natural causes, according to Jenkins and Dresnok. Jenkins is splitting his time between the U.S. and Japan, as he has married a Japanese citizen kidnapped by the North and defected together with her. Dresnok continues to live in Pyongyang.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]