Anchor: Three Americans detained in North Korea have urged Washington to make more active efforts for their release. The detained Americans made the call during an interview with CNN that was allowed by North Korean authorities. The U.S. government, meanwhile, stressed that it is working actively to secure the three men’s release. Our Bae Joo-yon has more.
 
Report: North Korea has allowed three Americans detained in the communist state to be interviewed by CNN.
 
CNN released its interviews with Kenneth Bae, Matthew Miller and Jeffrey Fowle held at a hotel in Pyongyang on Monday. CNN said each man was given five minutes for an interview.
 
Miller implored the U.S. government for help during his interview. He was detained after being accused of tearing up his tourist visa and seeking asylum upon entry.
 
[Sound bite: Mathew Miller (English)] 
“The American government is known for having a strong policy of protecting its citizens, yet for my case there is still no movement.”

Fowle, on his part, urged CNN to convey his desperate situation. Fowle is an American tourist who is accused of leaving a Bible in a hotel where he was staying. 

Bae told CNN that he is working eight hours a day, six days a week at a labor camp. CNN said that despite what he called "hard labor," Bae said he has been treated "as humanely as possible."
 
[Sound bite: Kenneth Bae (English)]
“It's been very difficult to stay in the camp right now, so I do ask the U.S. government and the people out there to really put an effort to send somebody to make it work.”

Sentenced to 15 years of hard labor for “anti-state crimes,” Bae has been detained in the North since November 2012.
 
After seeing the CNN interview, Bae’s mother expressed her distress in an interview with KBS over the phone.
 
[Sound bite: Bae Myung-hee - Kenneth Bae’s mother (Korean)]
“Monday’s interview is the first time I saw my son since seeing him on TV on January 20th. He has lost a lot of weight and looks stressed.”

Following the CNN interviews, the U.S. government promptly released statements on Monday when it was celebrating its Labor Day holiday.
 
U.S. National Security Council spokesman Patrick Ventrell said securing the Americans' release "is a top priority” and State Department Spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the United States is in "regular, close coordination" with the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang which acts as the "protecting power for issues involving U.S. citizens in North Korea.
 
Some observers say that the North allowed the interviews to hint to Washington that it wants further dialogue, following a U.S. government official’s secret visit to the North last month. 
Bae Joo-yon, KBS World Radio News.