The U.S. aircraft carrier Carl Vinson touched down at a naval base in Busan, a city in the southeast of Korea, on Tuesday. The South Korean navy reported that the U.S. aircraft carrier’s visit came hours after North Korea informed Japan of its intention to conduct a space rocket launch within the next few days.
As tensions rise over North Korea’s plan to launch the rocket between Wednesday and Dec. 1 in the direction of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea, the nuclear-powered vessel of Carrier Strike Group 1 entered Busan Naval Base, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in a show of U.S. military.
Despite South Korea’s warning on Monday to cease preparations for the launch, it would be Pyongyang’s third attempt of this nature this year, following two failed launches in May and August, respectively, to place a military spy satellite into orbit.
Rear Admiral Kim Ji-hoon, director of the maritime operations center at the Republic of Korea Fleet, stated, “The visit of U.S. Carrier Strike Group 1 demonstrates the alliance between South Korea and the United States and its resolute determination to counter advancing North Korean nuclear and missile threats.”
USS Carl Vinson is the third military aircraft carrier to visit this year, following USS Ronald Reagan in October and USS Nimitz in March.