US President Donald Trump’s arrival in Seoul Tuesday is being accompanied by a major show of force off the Korean Peninsula.
Three nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, along with a small fleet of warships and dozens of planes and helicopters, are conducting a mock battle in the waters around South Korea, a demonstration of the unique capabilities of US forces in the region that will likely be seen as a direct provocation by North Korea.
Tuesday’s drill — involving the USS Nimitz, the USS Ronald Reagan and the USS Theodore Roosevelt — comes after joint exercises by the US, Australian and South Korean navies intended to simulate the interception of shipments of nuclear material meant for North Korea.
North Korean government officials told CNN’s Will Ripley in Pyongyang Monday the US was increasingly taking action that could “ignite another Korean War.”
“Nobody knows when and how the ‘war maniac’ Trump will ignite the ‘wick of war,'” the officials said, referring to the presence of the carriers near the peninsula.
The drills follow Trump’s statement Monday in a press conference with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, that Tokyo will be able to shoot down North Korean missiles “when he completes the purchase of a lot of military equipment from the United States.”
Trump and Abe said they were in “complete agreement” on the way forward in dealing with North Korea, with both leaders saying the time was not right for talks, despite an indication by Trump Sunday he might one day be willing to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
“Some people said that my rhetoric is very strong,” Trump said. “But look at what’s happened with very weak rhetoric over the last 25 years. Look where we are now.”
Shoring up alliance
Monday and Tuesday’s drills come as Trump is to land in Seoul, where he will meet with South Korean President Moon Jae-in at the Blue House and inspect US and South Korean troops.
Tens of thousands of US troops are stationed in South Korea, which has been a major ally of the United States, since the two states fought together during the Korean War in the early 1950s.
With its large US military presence, Seoul has long participated in joint military exercises since the Korean War ended in an armistice and ceasefire in 1953.
In August the two nations took part in the Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises, one of two annual drills conducted by the allies.
While the US and South Korea say the joint military drills are defensive in nature, they enrage North Korea which views them as practice for an eventual invasion.
In a commentary Tuesday, the state-run North Korean newspaper Rodong Sinmun said “as long as the US and its followers continue their hostile acts against us, we will further bolster our nuclear, treasured sword of justice and defend our sovereignty and justice with nuclear weapons.”
It said the deployment of the three nuclear-powered carriers was raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula to an extreme level.
The exercises, according to US Forces Korea, are designed to “highlight the longstanding military partnership” between the two countries and improve stability and security in the region.