MOSCOW (Sputnik) — A second aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan, is being deployed off the Korean coast after a new ballistic missile test by Pyongyang, US defense sources told local media on Thursday.
The Reagan is ultimately expected to replace the USS Carl Vinson, which was stationed near the Korean peninsula last month as a show of force amid rising tensions in the region, the CNN reported.
The two carriers will conduct joint military exercises, the news channel cited the Navy as saying. The USS Ronald Reagan reportedly left Japanese waters on Tuesday after undergoing maintenance in Yokosuka.
The latest North Korean missile test was carried out on Sunday, with a ground-to-ground intermediate ballistic missile falling in the Sea of Japan. Next day, the country’s government confirmed the missile had successfully reentered the earth's lower atmosphere.
