U.S. flies supersonic bombers over Korean Peninsula
SEOUL, South Korea -- The United States flew two supersonic bombers over the Korean Peninsula on Tuesday in a show of force against North Korea, South Korean officials said.
The U.S. often sends powerful warplanes in times of heightened animosities with North Korea, and flew B-1B bombers several times this year as the North conducted a series of banned ballistic missile tests.
Tuesday's flights by B-1Bs came shortly after the death of a U.S. college student who was recently released by North Korea in a coma following more than 17 months of captivity.
Seoul's Defense Ministry said the bombers engaged in routine exercises with South Korean fighter jets aimed at showing deterrence against North Korea.
The U.S. military said the bombers conducted two separate drills with the Japanese and South Korean air forces. It said the flights demonstrated solidarity among South Korea, Japan and the United States "to defend against provocative and destabilizing actions in the Pacific theater."
The United States stations tens of thousands of troops in South Korea and Japan.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer said during a Tuesday afternoon briefing that a meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong Un is less likely to happen, but would happen under the right conditions.
"Clearly we're moving further away, not closer to those conditions," Spicer said.
The family of American college student Otto Warmbier said the 22-year-old died Monday, days after his release from North Korea. Analysts say his death will likely cast a shadow on relations between the U.S. and North Korea and compound efforts by South Korea's new liberal president, Moon Jae-in, to improve ties with the North.
Moon said in an interview with "CBS This Morning" co-host Norah O'Donnell that Warmbier's death showed "we must now have the perception that North Korea is an irrational regime," but that talks are still necessary because "we were unable to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue through only the sanctions and pressure."
"We cannot know for sure that North Korea killed Mr. Warmbier," Moon added, "But I believe it is quite clear that they have a heavy responsibility in the process that led to Mr. Warmbier's death."
A public funeral service for Warmbier has been scheduled for Thursday at his hometown high school in Ohio. Spring Grove Cemetery and Arboretum in Cincinnati says all who wish to join his family in a celebration of life are "cordially invited."
Meanwhile, the parents of a journalist executed in 2014 after being held hostage in Syria by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) are offering condolences to Warmbier's family.
James Foley was a freelance war correspondent before he was captured and held for nearly two years. His parents created the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation to advocate for the release of American hostages and to help keep journalists reporting in conflict zones safe.
In a statement through the foundation Tuesday, John and Diane Foley called Warmbier's death senseless. They said it should be a "call to action to those in the position to protect our American citizens here at home AND abroad."