U.S. State Department Issues Level 4 'Do Not Travel' Advisory for North Korea

The U.S. Department of State maintains a Level 4 'Do Not Travel' advisory for North Korea, citing a continuing serious risk of arrest, long-term detention and wrongful detention of U.S. citizens. U.S. passports cannot be used to travel to, in or through the DPRK unless specially validated by the Secretary of State, and such validations are granted only in very limited circumstances. Because the U.S. has no diplomatic relations with North Korea, it cannot provide direct help to U.S. citizens there in emergencies; Sweden's embassy in Pyongyang serves as protecting power with limited consular services, and North Korean authorities have often delayed or denied Swedish officials access to detain…