Tokyo, Japan. In a disturbing development for regional peace, the Japanese government has announced it is dispatching a squadron of naval vessels to accompany the US Navy task force ordered to Korea by US President Donald Trump.
The Japanese navy plans to accompany the US Navy’s Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group as it steams towards the Korean peninsula in a display of military power aimed at deterring the North Korean regime from further missile tests, two sources said.
The Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (MSDF) may conduct helicopter landings on each other’s ships, as well as communication drills, and will be armed and prepared to attack, should hostilities break out, the sources said.
The display of US and Japanese naval power close to China could upset Beijing, which is locked in a territorial dispute with Tokyo in the region over uninhabited islets close to Taiwan. It’s leader Xi Jinping, is just back from witnessing first hand the instability and aggressive nature of US President Donald Trump, who attacked Syria with 59 Tomahawk missiles during the Chinese state visit.
The North Korean state media warned on Tuesday of a nuclear attack on the United States at any sign of American aggression, indicating they had no intention of ending up like Syria without a strong response in turn.
The American President Trump, who has urged China to do more to rein in its impoverished ally and neighbor, said on Twitter that North Korea was “looking for trouble” and the United States would “solve the problem” with or without Beijing’s help.
North Korea remains technically in a state of war with the United States and its ally South Korea after the 1950-1953 Korean conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. It regularly threatens to destroy both countries and are in possession of a variety of nuclear explosive devices.
The Carl Vinson strike group, which cancelled a planned visit to Australia, is sailing from Singapore straight to Korea in a show of force by Trump. The 100,000 ton Nimitz-class vessel is powered by two nuclear reactors and carriers almost 100 aircraft.