US aircraft carrier arrives in South Korea as North’s leader Kim exchanges messages with Putin

By HYUNG-JIN KIM
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has arrived in South Korea in a demonstration of strength against North Korea. South Korea’s Defense Ministry says the USS Ronald Reagan and its battle group came on Thursday, after participating in a trilateral South Korean-U.S.-Japanese maritime exercise earlier this week. The carrier’s arrival is expected to anger North Korea, which views the deployment of such a powerful U.S. military asset as a major security threat. On Thursday, North Korea says leader Kim Jong Un has exchanged messages with Russian President President Vladimir Putin to mark 75 years of bilateral diplomatic relations.