SEOUL, South Korea – A US aircraft carrier arrived in South Korea on Sunday, days after North Korea test-fired cruise missiles to demonstrate its cruise capabilities.
The arrival of USS Carl Vinson and its strike group at Busan port, South Korea, was intended to display a solid US-Korea military alliance in the face of a sustained North Korean threat and increase interoperability of the allies’ total assets, the South Korean Navy said in a statement.
It said it was the first US aircraft carrier to travel to Korea since June.
The deployment of carriers is expected to infuriate North Korea, and North Korea sees the temporary deployment of such powerful US military assets as a major security threat. North Korea has responded to some of the past deployments of US aircraft carriers, long-range bombers and nuclear submarines with missile testing.
Since taking office on January 20th, US President Donald Trump has said he will once again reach out to North Korean leader Kim Jong to revive his diplomacy. North Korea has not responded directly to Trump’s overture, but it claims that US-led hostilities against North Korea have intensified since Trump took office.
North Korea said Friday that IT would test strategic cruise missiles earlier last week to inform the enemy of its military’s ability to counterattack and preparations for nuclear operations. After seeing the launch, the fourth missile test event in the North this year, Kim said the military should be fully prepared to use its nuclear weapons
Experts say Kim will not soon accept Trump’s overture as he focuses on Russia’s support for the war against Ukraine by providing weapons and troops. They say they can consider resuming diplomacy with Trump when Kim thinks he can’t maintain cooperation with his country’s currently booming Russia.
Kim and Trump met three times since 2018-19 in Trump’s first term to discuss the future of North Korea’s nuclear program. Their high-stakes diplomacy ultimately collapsed due to a fight over US-led economic sanctions against North Korea.
