The US plans to deploy more nuclear-capable warplanes around the Korean peninsula, in an effort to boost deterrence as North Korea steps up missile launches and prepares for a possible nuclear test.
Speaking at the Pentagon hours after North Korea launched several missiles, including an intercontinental ballistic missile, South Korean defence minister Lee Jong-sup said the US would increase the frequency of deployments of nuclear-capable assets to the Korean peninsula.
At a news conference with US defence secretary Lloyd Austin, Lee said Austin had pledged to respond to Pyongyang’s provocations by “employing US strategic assets to the level equivalent to constant deployment through increasing the frequency and intensity of strategic asset deployment in and around the Korean peninsula”.