North Korea prepared to strike U.S. aircraft carrier

North Korea said it was prepared to strike a U.S. aircraft carrier, on Sunday, as two Japanese navy ships joined a U.S. carrier group the western Pacific.

The U.S. administration has ordered the USS Carl Vinson to sail to waters off the Korean peninsula in response to rising tension over the North's nuclear and missile tests. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said on Saturday it would arrive "within days" but gave no other details.

The Hermit Kingdom’s ruling Workers’ Party newspaper on Sunday wrote that the country’s revolutionary forces are “combat-ready to sink a U.S. nuclear powered aircraft carrier with a single strike".

The paper likened the aircraft carrier to a "gross animal" and said a strike on it would be "an actual example to show our military's force".

North Korea has conducted five nuclear tests in recent years, and is working to nuclear missiles that can reach the United States.

It has also carried out a series of ballistic missile tests in defiance of United Nations sanctions.

U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to prevent North Korea from developing the capability to strike U.S. territory.

North Korea maintains that its nuclear program is intended as a defensive measure and has warned the United States and its allies South Korea and Japan, of a nuclear attack in response to any aggression.