04
March 2020
Past Event
Crash Landing into Freedom: The Stories of Former North Korean Soldiers

Crash Landing into Freedom: The Stories of Former North Korean Soldiers

Past Event
Hudson Institute, Washington, D.C. Headquarters
March 04, 2020
04
March 2020
Past Event

1201 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, D.C., District of Columbia 20004

Speakers:
Dr. Patrick M. Cronin

Asia-Pacific Security Chair, Hudson Institute

Colonel Steve Lee, U.S. Army (Ret.)

Senior Vice President, Korea Defense Veterans Association

OH Cheong Seong

Former Driver in the North Korean Panmunjom Military Police Unit of the Operations Bureau

LEE Unggil

Former Member of the North Korean People’s Army 11th Corps Special Forces and Member of the North Korean People’s Liberation Front

Congressman Ted Yoho

U.S. Representative, Florida's 3rd District, House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Asia, the Pacific, and Nonproliferation

**__In accordance with U.S. government travel advisories aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus in the United States, Hudson Institute asks that guests who have traveled to or from China, Iran, Italy, Japan, or South Korea within the past two weeks to please refrain from attending events in person and instead to watch events online via Hudson’s livestream.__**

**__An RSVP does not guarantee entry into the event. Confirmed attendees will receive an email from pthomas@hudson.org.__**

Join Hudson Institute for an event with two former North Korean soldiers as they discuss their escapes from the hermit kingdom. U.S. Representative Ted Yoho will present keynote remarks on the need for greater freedom across Asia.

Weeks before critical diplomatic talks between the Trump administration and North Korea commenced, OH Cheong Seong successfully attempted a daring escape within the heavily guarded demilitarized zone. Under gunfire, Seong, a driver in a North Korean military police unit, drove a truck to the border and crossed by foot into South Korea. For the first time in public in the United States, he will discuss his escape and the factors that compelled him to flee.

LEE Unggil, a former solider in North Korea’s 11th Corps Special Forces who escaped while completing university studies, will explain the plight of North Korean soldiers and the motivations for those seeking freedom.

Panelists will give insight into what life is like inside the country and describe why so many North Koreans, if given the choice, would choose freedom.

NOTE: This event is open to the press. All members of the media should RSVP to press@hudson.org.

Related Events
05
April 2024
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Stronger Together: The Importance of US-Japan Economic Relations
Featured Speakers:
Governor Eric Holcomb
Satoshi Miura
Kazumi Nishikawa
Anita Rajan
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Paul Sracic
Kenneth R. Weinstein
William Chou
Japanese Cherry Blossom trees bloom along the National Mall on March 28, 2021 in Washington, DC. The Japanese cherry trees were gifted to Washington, DC, by Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki in 1912 and draw tens of thousands of daily visitors around peak bloom every year. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)
05
April 2024
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Stronger Together: The Importance of US-Japan Economic Relations

Hudson’s Japan Chair will welcome Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb to make a major economic announcement.

Japanese Cherry Blossom trees bloom along the National Mall on March 28, 2021 in Washington, DC. The Japanese cherry trees were gifted to Washington, DC, by Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki in 1912 and draw tens of thousands of daily visitors around peak bloom every year. (Photo by Al Drago/Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Governor Eric Holcomb
Satoshi Miura
Kazumi Nishikawa
Anita Rajan
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Paul Sracic
Kenneth R. Weinstein
William Chou
09
April 2024
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Restoring America’s Commercial Maritime Industrial Base
Featured Speakers:
Joe Courtney
Michael Roberts
(Courtesy of Crowley Maritime)
09
April 2024
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Restoring America’s Commercial Maritime Industrial Base

Join Michael Roberts and Representative Joe Courtney (D-CT) for a discussion on America’s critical shipping and shipbuilding industries.

(Courtesy of Crowley Maritime)
Featured Speakers:
Joe Courtney
Michael Roberts
13
May 2024
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
The Pernicious Impact of China’s Anti-Secession Law
Featured Speakers:
Miles Yu
China Center
Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian participates in a rally to protest against the Anti-Secession Law on March 26, 2005, in Taipei, Taiwan. (Photo by Andrew Wong/Getty Images)
13
May 2024
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
The Pernicious Impact of China’s Anti-Secession Law

Hudson Institute’s China Center and United Microelectronics Corporation founder Robert Tsai will host a conference with experts and policymakers to analyze China’s 2005 Anti-Secession Law.

Taiwanese President Chen Shui-bian participates in a rally to protest against the Anti-Secession Law on March 26, 2005, in Taipei, Taiwan. (Photo by Andrew Wong/Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Miles Yu
China Center
21
March 2024
Past Event
Addressing the Developing World’s Debt Crisis with Former World Bank President David Malpass
Featured Speakers:
David Malpass
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Joshua Meservey
David Malpass speaks at a press conference on the fourth day of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings at the IMF headquarters on October 13, 2022, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
21
March 2024
Past Event
Addressing the Developing World’s Debt Crisis with Former World Bank President David Malpass

Former World Bank President David Malpass will present a new paper outlining constructive and cooperative ways to address the debt crisis in the developing world.

David Malpass speaks at a press conference on the fourth day of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings at the IMF headquarters on October 13, 2022, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
David Malpass
Thomas J. Duesterberg
Joshua Meservey