The United States deployed nuclear-capable bomber and stealth fighter jets to the Korean Peninsula on Wednesday (21/12). The deployment was carried out in a show of force exercise with North Korea.
The maneuvers came after Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un's younger sister, Kim Yo Jong, threatened to test a true-range intercontinental ballistic missile that could reach the US mainland.
Quoted by the Associated Press, the US flew B-52 bomber jets and F-22 stealth fighter jets in joint exercises with South Korean warplanes.
According to the South Korean Defense Ministry, the exercise was carried out to increase the readiness of the US army to protect Seoul from North Korean threats by all means available, including Uncle Sam's country's nuclear weapons.
The drills also included South Korean F-35 and F-15 fighter jets, and took place in waters southwest of Jeju Island.
US F-22 jets are deployed in South Korea for the first time in four years. The US said the nuclear-capable jet would patrol South Korea for the next week for exercises.
On Tuesday (20/12), Kim Jong Un's sister, Kim Yo Jong, threatened that his country was ready to test an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) with a real range which means it could reach the US mainland.
The threat was made by Kim Yo Jong in a statement released by the North Korean state news agency, KCNA, on Tuesday (20/12).