US carrier strike group heads toward W. Pacific near Korea

WASHINGTON – A group of U.S. warships is headed to the western Pacific Ocean near Korea, a U.S. defense official told CNN on Saturday.

The move of the Vinson strike group toward the vicinity of the Korean peninsula comes in response to recent North Korean “provocations,” CNN quoted the official as saying.

Admiral Harry Harris, commander of U.S. Pacific Command, directed the USS Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group to sail north to the Western Pacific after departing Singapore on Saturday, CNN said, citing Pacific Command.

The Vinson strike group is considered the first major U.S. military presence in the region under the administration of President Donald Trump. It started routine patrol operations in the South China Sea on Feb. 18.

Earlier this week, North Korea launched a ballistic missile into the East Sea just ahead of a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump and Xi discussed the North Korean nuclear issue in their talks at the Mar-a-Lago resort.

North Korea has ramped up its nuclear program under its relatively new leader Kim Jong Un, carrying out two nuclear tests and launching about 20 ballistic missiles last year alone.

According to Japanese media reports Sunday, Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe reiterated the need for close coordination on the North Korea issue in a 45-minute phone call.

In recent days, Trump has called on China to help take Pyongyang to task.

But in an interview with the Financial Times published a week ago ahead of his meeting with Xi, Trump noted that the U.S. would tackle North Korea even without China’s help.