telephone. this interview was his first opportunity to let his friends and family know he's okay and also possibly send a message to the one government agencies that may be able to help secure his release. see, joo is a permanent resident of the united states. his family lives there. but he remains a south korean citizen. it's up to that country to figure out how to get this young man home. as you know it's a complex situation, north and south korea remain technically at war. they have a heavily fortified border and no diplomatic ties. but now, if south korea is unable to intervene this 21-year-old who has been living in the united states since 2001 is in the very real danger of ending up in a north koreaen prison. >> will ripley reporting from pyongyang, north korea. not every day we have a reporter on the scene in north korea. a lot more today on "the situation room." cnn cannot verify if north korean officials told the nyu