Did a U.S. soldier try to defect to North Korea? That is what it is starting to look like. A U.S. Army private has put Washington into a diplomatic quandary with the nuclear-powered evil empire of Kim Jong-un.

A deputy commander of the U.S.-led command that oversees the Korean War truce said on Monday that the U.N. Command (UNC) and North Korea have begun talks about the case of Travis King. U.S. Army Private 2nd Class King crossed into North Korea last week. King was serving in South Korea. He was on a tour of the Demilitarized Zone on the border when he separated from the group and sprinted into North Korea. He is 23 years old.

The question, of course, is, why? Why would an American soldier serving in South Korea deliberately run across the border? It’s a mystery.

The UNC and North Korea’s military have been conducted through a mechanism established under the Korean War armistice. Lt. General Andrew Harrison, a British Army officer who serves as deputy commander of the multinational force confirmed the talks. He would not go into detail about the contact with North Korea but did say, “The primary concern for us is Private King’s welfare.”

“The conversation has commenced with the KPA through the mechanisms of the Armistice agreement,” Harrison said, referring to the North’s Korean People’s Army.

“I can’t say anything that could prejudice that process.”

The timing of this weird incident isn’t great. Normally, North Korea is eager to comment on U.S. nationals when they are detained. So far, the North Korean government has been silent on Private King. There is heightened tension on the Korean peninsula as North Korea conducted ballistic missile tests hours after a U.S. nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine arrived at a South Korean port. It was the first such visit by a nuclear submarine since the 1980s. It was a reminder to NoKo that there are nuclear-tipped missiles deployed within striking distance at all times.

The U.N. Security Council has banned North Korea from using ballistic missile technology. North Korea rejects this ban.

The tour the private was on was one of the border truce village, known as the Joint Security Area (JSA). The tours were suspended after King ran across the border. There are strict rules for these tours that must be followed. They are overseen by the UNC. Visitors must sign up well in advance in order to get approval. There are even rules on what can be worn on the tour. Pictures of the tour group just before King ran off show him wearing all black. He does stick out from the others.

There are questions as to why King was authorized to go on a tour in the first place. His record is problematic. He served detention in South Korea. The charges were assault and damaging public property. He was due to fly back to Fort Bliss, Texas, his home base, last week to face disciplinary action.

Is that why he ran away? Was it because he didn’t want to go home and face punishment?

Harrison didn’t say when or how tours by JSA would resume. That decision has not been made. “It’s a constant balance between that value (of educating the public) and the risk to the individuals who are in the Demilitarised Zone,” he said.

One thing is noticeable. Tensions are escalating.

On Saturday, the North fired a barrage of cruise missiles toward the sea to the west of the Korean Peninsula. On Monday, another U.S. nuclear-powered submarine arrived in South Korea.

Late last week, North Korea warned that deployment of U.S. aircraft carriers, bombers or missile submarines in South Korea could meet criteria for its use of nuclear weapons.

This soldier is very likely in need of some mental health treatment. Clearly, something is off if he thought it made sense to run into North Korea rather than return to his home base in Texas. He’s been in some kind of trouble for which he is expected to be held accountable.

Some facts about King have been published.

King has been a cavalry scout in the U.S. Army since January 2021 and has no deployments, according to service information provided by Army spokesperson Bryce Dubee.

King has received three medals while serving in the U.S. military: the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Defense Service Medal and the Overseas Service Ribbon. These medals are commonly received by American service members in Korea.

On Sept. 4, 2022, King failed to report for his daily formation and, when reached away from the base, stated that he “refused to return to post or America,” a U.S. official told ABC News.

At the time, King was serving as a cavalry scout at Camp Bonifas in northwestern South Korea, just south of the southern end of the Korean Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, the heavily militarized border that separates North and South Korea. As a scout and because of where he was serving, King would have been aware of the risks in crossing the DMZ, according to the official.

King was later found in Uijeongbu, about 25 miles southeast of Camp Bonifas.

There is more.

King served 47 days in a South Korean detention facility following an altercation with locals, according to a U.S. official.

South Korean media reported that King allegedly punched someone in the face repeatedly while drinking at a club in Seoul last September. He also allegedly kicked and broke the door of a police patrol car that was sent to the scene of a reported assault in Seoul last October, according to South Korean media.

After finishing his sentence, King was released from the detention facility on July 10, according to The Associated Press.

The secretary of defense weighed in without saying very much.

While on the tour, the soldier “willfully and without authorization crossed the military demarcation line,” according to U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who didn’t identify King by name.

“We’re very early in this event and so there’s a lot that we’re still trying to learn,” Austin told reporters on July 18. “We believe that he is in DPRK custody. We’re closely monitoring and investigating the situation, and working to notify the soldier’s next of kin and engaging to address this incident.”

“I’m absolutely foremost concerned about the welfare of our troop. We will remain focused on this, and this will develop in the next several days,” he added.

He appears to be a troubled young man. Let’s hope he’s released from his North Korean hosts and allowed to seek help.