BREAKING NEWS

Japanese ships join US carrier for drills as it nears Korean waters

TOKYO - Two Japanese destroyers on Sunday began an exercise with the US Carl Vinson carrier strike group in the Western Pacific as it approaches waters around the Korean peninsula, Japan's navy said.
The two Japanese warships, the Samidare and Ashigara, left western Japan on Friday to join the Carl Vinson in a show of solidarity as the United States confronts North Korea over its ballistic missile program and nuclear tests.
The destroyers will "practice a variety of tactics" with the US strike group, the Japan Maritime Self Defence Force (MSDF) said in a statement.
US President Donald Trump ordered the Carl Vinson carrier strike group to sail to the waters off the Korean peninsula in response to rising tension over North Korea.