Despite claims from the White House that a U.S. aircraft carrier was ordered into the Sea of Japan as a show of force against North Korea, the USS Carl Vinson and four other ships were reportedly moving in the opposite direction toward the Indian Ocean to take part in military exercises with Australia’s navy. According to The New York Times, the White House on Tuesday passed the buck to the Pentagon, which reportedly prematurely announced the carrier’s movements. On Monday, Defense News reported that the carrier and its ships “had yet to head north.”
