Trump on Otto Warmbier: 'I'm in such a horrible position'

President Trump on Saturday defended himself after he appeared to accept North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s statement regarding the death of Otto Warmbier, the student who was imprisoned in North Korea and died soon after his return to the US.

“I’m in such a horrible position because in one way, I have to negotiate and the other way, I love Mr. and Mrs. Warmbier,” Trump said during his Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) address. “And I love Otto, and it’s a very, very delicate balance. He was a special young man and to see what happened was so bad, so bad.”

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Trump’s remark came a day after Otto’s parents, Fred and Cindy Warmbier, said in a statement to NBC News: “We have been respectful during this summit process. Now we must speak out. Kim and his evil regime are responsible for the death of our son Otto. Kim and his evil regime are responsible for unimaginable cruelty and inhumanity. No excuses or lavish praise can change that.”

Their comments followed Trump’s Thursday show of support for Kim at a press conference.

He was asked if, during his summit with Kim, he confronted the leader about Warmbier’s alarming condition upon his return to the US.

Trump replied, in part: “I have, and we have talked about it. And I really don’t think it was in his interest at all…He tells me that he didn’t know about it, and I will take him at his word.”