US Puts Second Nuclear Submarine by South Korea After Warning Kim Jong Un

An American nuclear submarine arrived at a major South Korean port on Sunday, the second that has arrived in the country in the last two months, amid reports of a new North Korean missile test.

As confirmed by the South Korean navy to the Yonhap news agency, the Virginia-class warship USS Missouri, also designated SSN-780, has arrived at one of the nation's key naval bases in the port city of Busan, roughly 200 miles southeast of the capital city, Seoul. The arrival comes in the wake of South Korea and the United States holding the second meeting of the Nuclear Deterrence Consultative Group in Washington, D.C., on Friday.

"With the deployment of the U.S. warship, we plan to strengthen naval exchanges and cooperation with the United States, as well as strengthen our common defense posture," the South Korean Defense Ministry said in a statement.

The development also comes amid reports that North Korea is planning a new launch test for an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The totalitarian state has long taken a threatening posture towards its neighbor South Korea as well as the U.S., necessitating a close defense partnership between the two nations. Part of the current discussions has been plans for a new deterrent system for potential North Korean aggression to be put in place by the middle of next year.

Newsweek reached out to the U.S. Department of Defense via email for comment.

In a statement following the meeting, the U.S. reaffirmed its commitment to South Korea and warned that a nuclear strike from North Korea would spell the end of leader Kim Jong Un's "regime."

"The United States reaffirmed its unwavering commitment to provide extended deterrence to the ROK [South Korea], backed by the full range of U.S. capabilities including nuclear," a Saturday statement from the White House declared. "Any nuclear attack by North Korea against the United States or its allies is unacceptable and will result in the end of the Kim regime, and the U.S. side reiterated that any nuclear attack by the DPRK against the ROK will be met with a swift, overwhelming, and decisive response."

In November, another U.S. nuclear submarine, the USS Santa Fe, also arrived in South Korea, at a base on the island of Jeju. Around the same time, the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier arrived in Busan to help bolster North Korean deterrence, according to Reuters.

Previous reports have indicated North Korea's attempts to put a satellite in orbit, including one effort confirmed by Japanese intelligence that made use of banned ICBM technology. Late last month, South Korean intelligence confirmed a successful North Korean ICBM launch containing a satellite, with the effort allegedly receiving assistance from Russia.