North Korea declares readiness to sink US aircraft carrier

North Korea said today it is ready to sink the US aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson to demonstrate Pyongyang's military might.

US aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson. Photo: Reuters.

US President Donald Trump in April ordered the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group to move closer to the Korean Peninsula in response to rising tensions related to North Korea. US Vice President Mike Pence said on April 22 that the group of ships would arrive "in the next few days" without giving details.

"Our revolutionary forces are combat-ready to sink a US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier with a single blow," Rodong Sinmun, the newspaper of the North Korean Workers' Party, said in a commentary today.

The commentary, which compared the USS Carl Vinson to a “fat animal” and attacked the ship as a “real-life example of military might,” was published on page three of the newspaper, after two pages devoted to leader Kim Jong-un.

USS Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group

North Korea will celebrate the 85th anniversary of the founding of the People's Army on April 25. Many experts believe that Pyongyang could conduct a nuclear or missile test on this occasion. North Korea has conducted five nuclear tests and test-fired several ballistic missiles.

President Trump vowed to prevent North Korea from gaining the ability to strike the United States with nuclear missiles, warning that no option, including military action, was ruled out. North Korea also threatened to launch a nuclear attack on the United States if Washington took provocative action.

The power of a US nuclear aircraft carrier deployed near the Korean peninsula. Click on the image to see a larger image. Graphics: Viet Chung.

According to VNE