Japan plans joint drills with US near Korean peninsula

(Baonghean.vn) - Two sources said on April 12 that the Japanese navy plans to participate in a joint exercise with the US strike group led by the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier, currently heading towards the Korean peninsula, in a move believed to be aimed at demonstrating US military power to Pyongyang.

According to sources, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) may conduct helicopter landings on each country's aircraft carriers, as well as communication drills, as the USS Carl Vinson and its escorts are approaching Japanese territory.

"Tokyo wants to dispatch several destroyers as the Carl Vinson enters the East China Sea," the source said. MSDF officials have yet to respond to the reports.

USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier. Photo: Reuters.

If the US-Japan drills take place, they could trigger an angry reaction from China, which has a territorial dispute with Japan over small uninhabited islands near Taiwan.

Tokyo's planned show of military might comes amid growing concerns over North Korea's nuclear and ballistic missile development program and threats from the Trump administration to take unilateral action to address the North.

For its part, North Korean media on April 12 warned of a nuclear attack on the United States if Washington takes any provocative actions against Pyongyang.

The US Navy prepares to deploy an F18 fighter jet from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson during an exercise in the East Sea on April 3, 2017. Photo: Reuters.

Meanwhile, South Korea's acting President Hwang Kyo-ahn warned of "greater provocations" from North Korea, ordering the military to step up surveillance and ensure close communication with Washington about any moves by Pyongyang.

Tensions have been rising on the Korean peninsula amid concerns that Pyongyang could conduct an intercontinental ballistic missile test on the occasion of the 105th birthday of the late North Korean leader this weekend./.

Lan Ha

(According to Reuters)