U.S. ship keeps tabs on China / George Washington's deployment sends symbolic signal to neighbors

The U.S. Navy's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington is now stationed at its new home port at the U.S. naval base in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, marking the first time a U.S. nuclear carrier has been based outside the United States.

This "forward home porting" is intended to keep watch over China's military buildup, especially the modernization of its naval capabilities.

The deployment of the giant U.S. warship to Yokosuka, however, has raised a number of safety-related concerns, in particular over the handling and disclosure of information between Japan and the United States in the event of an accident involving the nuclear-powered carrier.

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