US and North Korea ‘closer to brink’ of accidental conflict
US Navy orders aircraft carrier group to take up position near Korean peninsula, compounding already high risk of miscalculation, analysts warn
A US Navy strike group headed by the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson steamed towards the western Pacific on Sunday for what is expected to be another American show of force off the Korean peninsula.
The US Pacific Command ordered the group – which includes several missile destroyers and cruisers – to sail north from Singapore on Saturday, according to the US Navy.
The orders come as observers warn of a growing risk of accidental conflict on the peninsula. While the US and North Korea would avoid unilateral action, rising tensions in the region mean either one might, in haste, misread moves by the other.
“Neither the US nor North Korea would take the initiative to wage a war, but the risk of conflict is higher as a small miscalculation or accident could bring war to the peninsula,” said Zhang Tuosheng, from the China Foundation for International and Strategic Studies.
Beijing-based military analyst Li Jie agreed. “The [presence of] the US strike group [near the Korean peninsula] will surely raise the possibility of miscalculation, which is already very high. It could go even higher if [US President] Donald Trump or [North Korean leader] Kim Jong-un takes a stronger stand against the other.”