The newspaper said the aircraft carrier would be deployed in battle formation

The football World Cup finals are due to be held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June.

According to the JoonAng, an US airborne warning and control system (Awac) will be deployed. Surveillance flights and spy satellite activity monitoring North Korea will be increased.

Tension between the North and South has stepped up since US President George W Bush last month named the North as a member of a global "axis of evil".

Special forces

The newspaper said the US had also agreed to similar measures for the Asian Games, due to be held in the South Korean city of Pusan in September and October.

South Korea has promised to make the football finals the safest ever.

The authorities say stadiums will be surrounded by no-fly zones, and police and special forces have held large-scale exercises to demonstrate their preparedness.

The US has about 37,000 troops permanently stationed in South Korea. The North and South have technically remained at war since a truce ended fighting in 1953.

The US football team is scheduled to play all three of its first-round matches in South Korea. It is grouped with South Korea, Portugal and Poland.