US flies surveillance aircraft near Korean Peninsula: aviation tracker

A US spy plane flew near the Korean Peninsula early Tuesday, an aviation tracker said, in what appeared to be an effort to monitor North Korea just days ahead of the US presidential election.

The US Air Force's E-8C Joint Stars was spotted in skies above the Yellow Sea from late Monday to early Tuesday, No callsign tweeted.

The same type of the aircraft was also seen carrying out operations Saturday night above the western waters.

The flights came amid speculation the North could test its new strategic weapons near the Nov. 3 US presidential election with the two countries' nuclear negotiations remaining deadlocked since last year.

On Oct. 10, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to continue strengthening the country's self-defense "war deterrent" and showed off a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and other weapons during a massive military parade in Pyongyang. (Yonhap)