Three U.S. citizens who had been detained in North Korea returned home early Thursday, a day after their release during a visit to Pyongyang by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

President Donald Trump greeted the three Americans at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington and said he wants to thank North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. He also indicated optimism for the planned talks with Kim aimed at denuclearizing the North.

Pompeo flew to North Korea on Wednesday and secured the release of Kim Dong Chul, Kim Hak Song and Kim Sang Dok, also known as Tony Kim. They had been held for periods ranging from one to two and half years over alleged espionage and other crimes.

"The president views this as a positive gesture and a step in the right direction from the North Korean leader. However, total denuclearization will remain the top priority," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Wednesday in Washington, referring to the release of the three Americans.

(Getty/Kyodo)

Also on Wednesday, Trump said the date and location of his summit with Kim will be announced in three days. The meeting is expected to take place by early June.

"Frankly, nobody thought this was going to happen and I appreciate Kim Jong Un doing this and allowing them to go," Trump said at a Cabinet meeting.

Although the plane carrying the returnees landed in the early hours of Thursday at the Andrews Air Force Base, Trump was there to welcome them with his wife Melania and Vice President Mike Pence.

Trump, with a smile, shook hands with each of the three. They appeared to have no health problems.

The families of the returnees expressed their deep gratitude to the Trump administration.

In October 2015, North Korea detained Kim Dong Chul, who reportedly ran a trading company in Rason, a special economic zone on the northeastern tip of North Korea bordering China and Russia, on suspicion of espionage. He was given a sentence equivalent to a 10-year prison term in April 2016.

Kim Sang Dok, who taught accounting at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, and Kim Hak Song, who also worked for the university, had been in custody since April and May of 2017, respectively, for allegedly committing "hostile acts" against Pyongyang.

It was the first time North Korea has released detained U.S. citizens since last June, when it freed Otto Warmbier, a University of Virginia student.

Warmbier, who was in a coma when he was released, died soon after returning to the United States following more than 17 months' imprisonment.

[KNS/Kyodo]

Three U.S. citizens who had been detained in North Korea returned home early Thursday, a day after their release during a visit to Pyongyang by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

President Donald Trump greeted the three Americans at Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington and said he wants to thank North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. He also indicated optimism for the planned talks with Kim aimed at denuclearizing the North.

Pompeo flew to North Korea on Wednesday and secured the release of Kim Dong Chul, Kim Hak Song and Kim Sang Dok, also known as Tony Kim. They had been held for periods ranging from one to two and half years over alleged espionage and other crimes.

"The president views this as a positive gesture and a step in the right direction from the North Korean leader. However, total denuclearization will remain the top priority," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Wednesday in Washington, referring to the release of the three Americans.

Also on Wednesday, Trump said the date and location of his summit with Kim will be announced in three days. The meeting is expected to take place by early June.

"Frankly, nobody thought this was going to happen and I appreciate Kim Jong Un doing this and allowing them to go," Trump said at a Cabinet meeting.

Although the plane carrying the returnees landed in the early hours of Thursday at the Andrews Air Force Base, Trump was there to welcome them with his wife Melania and Vice President Mike Pence.

Trump, with a smile, shook hands with each of the three. They appeared to have no health problems.

The families of the returnees expressed their deep gratitude to the Trump administration.

(Kim Dong Chul)

In October 2015, North Korea detained Kim Dong Chul, who reportedly ran a trading company in Rason, a special economic zone on the northeastern tip of North Korea bordering China and Russia, on suspicion of espionage. He was given a sentence equivalent to a 10-year prison term in April 2016.

Kim Sang Dok, who taught accounting at Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, and Kim Hak Song, who also worked for the university, had been in custody since April and May of 2017, respectively, for allegedly committing "hostile acts" against Pyongyang.

It was the first time North Korea has released detained U.S. citizens since last June, when it freed Otto Warmbier, a University of Virginia student.

Warmbier, who was in a coma when he was released, died soon after returning to the United States following more than 17 months' imprisonment.