NORTH KOREA

PILOT IS A SPY: Pyongyang officials today ratcheted up the pressure on U.S. officials trying to secure the release of American helicopter co-pilot Bobby Hall by insisting on an apology in the aftermath of what they're now calling a spy mission. The North Korean news agency declared today that their country's probe has proved that the December 17 helicopter incident was "a deliberate act of espionage." The U.S. State Department denied the charge, saying the flight was a routine training mission which "regrettably" crossed into North Korea by mistake. As the war of words continued, the North Koreans released a photo purporting to show Hall in captivity with his hands raised in an apparent gesture of surrender. Meanwhile, secret negotiations between the two countries over the co-pilot's release continue in North Korea. Today, State Department diplomat Thomas Hubbard flew to Seoul to meet with South Korean and U.S. officials before heading to Pyongyang. Yesterday, North Korea wrote to the