US Carrier Drills with Japanese Navy Around Okinawa, Southwest of Korean Peninsula

In this handout provided by the U.S. Navy, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) is underway in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of responsibility in the Pacific Ocean March 12, 2011. Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Dylan McCord/U.S. Navy via Getty Images

A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, the Ronald Reagan, is conducting drills with a Japanese warship in waters around Okinawa southwest of the Korean peninsula, Japan’s military said on Wednesday.

The exercise comes amid heightened tension with North Korea as the U.S. holds air drills in the region with B1-B bombers flown from Guam.