US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is looking to address confusion over a US aircraft carrier group, saying that its schedule had been disclosed earlier to be transparent.
Submarines also regularly provide undersea cover for carrier strike groups.
The strike group has been conducting drills with the Australian navy in recent days, the official said, though it scrapped a planned port visit in Australia as a result of the new orders. The U.S. media went into overdrive and Fox reported on April 14 that the armada was "steaming" toward North Korea.
The Navy was criticized for taking a week to correct the report.
A spokesman for U.S. Pacific Command said the move was to "maintain readiness and presence in the Western Pacific".
North Korea attempted but failed to launch a ballistic missile on its east coast Sunday, the latest sign of rising tensions in Asia.
In an interview aired April 12, President Donald Trump said: "We are sending an armada, very powerful". What are we doing right now in terms of North Korea?
But he added: "As all of you know, readiness is the key". In a message directed at Kim Jong Un's regime, he said the world mustn't doubt Trump's resolve following his "decisive action" against Syria and Afghanistan. "Very powerful, far more powerful than the aircraft carrier, that I can tell you", said Mr Trump.
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A multi-state manhunt ensued, and there was no sign of Stephens until Tuesday at a little after 11 a.m. Godwin will be laid to rest Saturday, almost a week after he his last meal with his children.
The mixup was revealed on Monday when the Navy posted a photo of the Carl Vinson sailing through the Sunda Strait separating the islands of Sumatra and Java in Indonesia.
The statements showed that disagreements with China remained even as the Trump administration sought help from Beijing in reining in North Korea, its neighbor and ally.
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), right is moored pierside in Singapore, April 4, 2017.
North Korea staged a massive military parade on Saturday and observers widely expected the country to conduct a sixth nuclear test to coincide with celebrations marking the birthdate of regime founder Kim Il-Sung.
North Korean state media has warned of a nuclear attack on the USA in retaliation for any signs of aggression, a threat that has been made numerous times before.
But that test hasn't happened yet, though North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attempted to launch a missile Sunday that the Pentagon said blew up nearly immediately after launch.
"The United States of America will always seek peace but under President Trump, the shield stands guard and the sword stands ready".
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