The US may deploy aircraft carriers to the Sea of Japan if North Korea conducts a nuclear test.
The US, Japan, and South Korea could also impose unilateral sanctions against North Korea.
Sputnik - The US is drafting a resolution for the UN Security Council to increase sanctions pressure on North Korea, and is considering deploying an aircraft carrier to the Sea of Japan (also known as the East Sea) if Pyongyang conducts a nuclear test, Japanese media reported.
The draft resolution may include a restriction on the export of oil and petroleum products to North Korea, as well as sanctions against the Lazarus hacker group, which is allegedly associated with the Asian country.
Furthermore, it cannot be ruled out that, if the draft resolution is not approved, the US, Japan, and South Korea will impose unilateral sanctions against North Korea.
To highlight Washington's trilateral ties with Seoul and Tokyo, its closest allies in Asia, the head of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Admiral John Aquilino, may be accompanied by high-ranking officials from the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the South Korean Armed Forces aboard a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier sailing in the Sea of Japan, sources said.
North Korea has been launching ballistic missiles at an unprecedented rate this year, and the country is also believed to be preparing for its seventh nuclear test, which would be its first since September 2017, writes Kyodo News.
In turn, Pyongyang says its military activity is a response to "provocations from South Korea."