The condition of Army Private 2nd Class Travis King, the U.S. soldier who ran across the border into North Korea, is unclear, as talks between the American-led U.N. Command and the reclusive Communist country move forward.

CBS News reports that Andrew Harrison, a British lieutenant general who is the deputy commander at the U.N. Command, said Monday (July 24) that the two sides have started a conversation about King’s return but declined to share details.

"None of us know where this is going to end. I am in life an optimist, and I remain optimistic. But again, I will leave it at that,” Harrison said during the news conference in South Korea.

King allegedly joined a group of tourists who were visiting the Joint Security Area in Panmunjom when he crossed the border July 19 and is now being held in North Korea. At that time, he was scheduled to report to Fort Bliss, Texas after his release from confinement in South Korea on an assault conviction.

Meanwhile, North Korea has made no public statements about King. Some analysts tell CBS News that North Korea leader Kim Jong Un could wait months before releasing meaningful information about the soldier as leverage to gain concessions from the Biden administration.

But other analysts have a different view. U.S. military personnel who have crossed the demilitarized zone (DMZ), which has separated the North and South since the 1950-1953 Korean War ended in an armistice, into North Korea “are inevitably a nuisance” to the North Korean regime, Thae Yong-ho, a North Korean diplomat who defected to South Korea, told CBS News.

These rare defections are problematic for the North “because the cost-effectiveness is low in the long run" when it comes to propaganda and leverage value, the former diplomat explained.

This drama unfolds amid a time of escalated tension between North Korea and the United States. The United States and South Korea are conducting military exercises that South Korean officials said included a nuclear-propelled U.S. submarine. North Korea has responded by test-firing ballistic and cruise missiles.

King, 23, joined the military in January 2021 and served as a cavalry scout, The Washington Post reported. His job involved gathering field information about enemy positions, vehicles, weapons and activity.

Before crossing into North Korea, King had just completed a 50-day, hard-labor sentence in South Korea for assault and other offenses, The Post reported. U.S. military personnel escorted King to the airport where he was scheduled to board a flight to the United States for administrative separation for discharge from the Army. King, however, didn’t board the flight.

The DMZ, which separates North and South Korea, is one of the most heavily militarized borders in the world. In 1953, the DMZ was formed after fighting ended during the Korean War and an armistice was signed. While the countries are still technically at war, the DMZ “ensures the demarcation between them remains peaceful.” Currently, the United States maintains a large troop presence in South Korea and considers the country an ally.