North Korea has deported an American veteran of the Korean War who had been detained since October for what Pyongyang described as "hostile acts" against the communist country.
Merrill Newman, an 85-year-old from California, was deported "from a humanitarian viewpoint", North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, citing his "sincere repentance" as well as his age and health condition.
The release came as US Vice-President Joe Biden visited South Korea, the last stop on a three-country Asia tour that included Japan and China.
"It's a positive thing they've done," Biden said during his trip to the demilitarised zone, which has split the peninsula since the 1950-1953 Korean War.
But he urged Pyongyang to free another US citizen, Kenneth Bae, a 45-year-old tour operator who was arrested a year ago and sentenced to 15 years' hard labour on charges of seeking to topple the government.
Newman, who has a heart condition, was plucked off a plane in October as he was leaving Pyongyang following a tourist visit.
Biden's office said the vice-president had spoken to him by telephone.
"I offered him a ride home on Air Force Two, but as he pointed out, there's a direct flight to San Francisco, so I don't blame him, I'd be on that flight too," Biden told reporters.
Last week Pyongyang for the first time officially admitted holding Newman, saying he was detained for "hostile acts" after entering the country "under the guise of a tourist".
North Korea had accused him of committing crimes both as a tourist and during his participation in the Korean War six decades ago.
Newman, a retired financial executive, had filmed a video apology confessing to his crimes.
The North released the footage and photos showing Newman reading the apology, which was dated November 9 and ran to nearly 600 words.
Newman, who supervised a South Korean guerrilla unit during the war, had intended to use his trip to North Korea to meet surviving soldiers.
But friends and relatives have said the grandfather was detained due to a "misunderstanding".
South Korean veterans who served with Newman said North Korea fabricated charges against the American.
North Korea's secretive communist regime is widely thought to govern the country with an iron fist, with frequent public executions and up to 200,000 political prisoners in labour camps.
