Dennis Rodman's plea to Kim Jong Un to release tour operator sentenced to 15 years hard labor Former NBA star Dennis Rodman is tapping his friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to ask for the release of a Korean-American man sentenced to 15 years of hard labor in the North. 'I'm calling on the Supreme Leader of North Korea or as I call him "Kim," to do me a solid and cut Kenneth Bae loose,' Rodman said on Twitter on Tuesday. He said the tweet was posted as a direct response to a Seattle Times editorial that dared him to ask Kim for the release, if the two are really buddies. Buds: Dennis Rodman, left, has called on North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un, right, to release American prisoner Kenneth Bae (Mr Rodman with Kim Jong Un in February during his visit to North Korea) Sway: Dennis Rodman, left hugging the North Korean leader in February, referred to the dictator as 'Kim' in his Twitter message asking him to release the American being held captive Rodman visited North Korea in February and sat next to Kim as they watched an exhibition basketball game. His trip came at a time of high tension between Pyongyang and Washington and was not endorsed by the U.S. State Department. Kenneth Bae, a U.S. citizen, is a tour operator who was arrested in North Korea in November Bae is a tour operator who was arrested in North Korea in November. The North's Supreme Court sentenced him last week for unspecified 'hostile acts' against the state. In a Foreign Ministry statement on Sunday, North Korea said the 44-year-old Washington state man entered the country with a disguised identity. Bae is at least the sixth American detained in North Korea since 2009. The others eventually were deported or released, some after trips to Pyongyang by prominent Americans, including former U.S. presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter. North Korea's Foreign Ministry rejected speculation that it was seeking a U.S. envoy to negotiate Bae's release, saying he is not a political bargaining chip. Analysts have said North Korea may be using Bae as bait to open direct negotiations with the United States over its nuclear arms programs. Bae's sentencing came during a lull after weeks of threats of war from Pyongyang against the U.S. and South Korea. The U.S. has called for the North to immediately release Bae. It relies on Swedish diplomats in Pyongyang to deal with Bae's case because the North and the U.S. have no formal diplomatic relations after the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce instead of a peace treaty. Social Media: The former NBA star took to Twitter to send an informal plea to the North Korean leader In an op-ed piece for the Seattle paper, dated May 3 by Thanh Tan, the author suggested Rodman try his hand at diplomacy, given he seemed cozy with the dictator during his recent trip to the country. Dennis Rodman claims to be lifelong buddies with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. Really?' she wrote. Well, perhaps now is the time for the NBA has-been to practice some real basketball diplomacy and call up his so-called friend for a favor: Grant American detainee Kenneth Bae amnesty and release him to his family. North Korea has not described the exact nature of Bae's alleged crimes. Rodman said after his trip to North Korea that he planned to return in August to vacation with Kim, a diehard basketball fan.