Dennis Rodaman Visits North Korea For The Third Time

Dennis Rodaman Visits North Korea For The Third Time

Although Dennis Rodman was not able to meet with Kim Jong Un in his latest visit to North Korea, he praised the North Korean basketball players. The former NBA star provided assistance in setting up a possible exhibition game between a number of NBA veterans and North Korean basketball players. The names of the players have yet to be released. The exhibition game is scheduled to be held on January 8, the birthday of the North Korean leader.

The third visit of Rodman follows the execution of Jang Song Theak, uncle of Kim and a high ranking government official.

The execution resulted to uncertainty in the situation in North Korea and added to the tension with the United States and South Korea. The first visit of Dennis Rodman into the isolated nation allowed him to befriend Kim. Rodman brought the Harlem Globetrotters to North Korea for an exhibition game with Kim in the audience.

Kim met Rodman after the game and hosted a dinner for the former NBA star. Although the most recent visit did not allow Rodman to meet with Kim, he said that he will be back.

Rodman described the North Korean leader as a good guy, but he did not make any comments of the human rights situation in the country.

Paddy Power was the sponsor of the latest trip of Dennis Rodman. However, the company removed its name from the event after it reviewed the project. The company said it was removing Rodman after it re-evaluated the project.

The removal was in response to the global condemnation of the North Korean government. Despite the removal, Paddy Power indicated that it will honor its contractual obligations with Rodman and the team.

The first trip of Dennis Rodman was criticized after he visited the country for the first time since it came as North Korea threatened Japan, North Korea, and the United States with a nuclear attack.

Posted by James Fried on Wednesday December 25 2013, 4:26 AM EST. Ref: CNN. Link. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, World. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0