su semiconductor plant. the other stop is japan. but as biden makes the rounds, there is also growing concern over what north korea might do next to rattle the saber. the united states preparing for the distinct possibility that kim jong-un would conduct a missile test, an icbm, in coordination with biden s trip. wouldn t be the first time he did it. more on that in a moment. let s begin in seoul, south korea, cnn s jeremy diamond is there. tell us what the biden administration hopes to accomplish on this trip, both in south korea and japan. reporter: well, jim, president biden has arrived here in south korea at a moment of extraordinary tension as the potential for north korean ballistic missile tests looms large over the president s trip. we have learned according to an official familiar with the intelligence that south that north korea appears to be taking steps to fuel an icbm, which would be one of the final stages before a launch. really raising the stakes and the p
remarks here in south korea, president hailed the u.s./south korea relationship as a linchpin of peace and stability. trying to shore up the alliance with japan after his visit concludes here in south korea. he wants to bolster the relationship as a team when u.s. intelligence is warning of a heightened threat of a north korean missile and/or nuclear test, potentially while president biden is here in the region. certainly a moment of heightened tension. and president biden wants to send a strong message that the u.s. will defend its allies in the region. now, listen, president biden is also making clear this is about national security. it s also about economic security. that is why we saw the president visiting a samsung semiconductor chip factory earlier today. and the president in reinforcing his message about this region by talking also about the war in ukraine and russia, insisting the u.s. and wall lies should not be relying on autocracies for critical materials. and tha
america s commitment to allies in the region of course after months of focus on ukraine and russia s invasion there. the president s first stop is south korea, where he underscored the importance of this region and this moment. listen. so much, so much of the future of the world is going to be written here in the endopacific over the next several decades. we re standing at an inflection point in history where the decisions we make today will have far reaching impacts on the world we leave to our children tomorrow. the issues the president is facing and tackle anything asia are serious ones. impactful ones, including a looming threat of a possible missile test coming from north korea while biden is overseas. and problems elsewhere, being flown to the president right now for his signature is the bill that congress just approved to give $40 billion of additional aid to ukraine. and that s just to name one of many. let s start in seoul, south korea. jeremy diamond is there. j
that facility serving as a backdrop for biden s broader message. that robust u.s. alliances with its asian allies is key to a thriving global economy and security. so much of the future of the world is going to be written here in the indo-pacific over the next several decades. we re standing at an inflection point in history where the decisions we made today will have far reaching impacts on the world we leave to our children tomorrow. the five-day trip through south korea, then next japan, also aimed at trying to counter china s growing influence in the region. we think putting that on display over four days bilaterally with the rok and japan through the quad, through the indo-pacific economic framework, it will send a powerful message. we think that message will be heard everywhere. we think it will be heard in beijing. even in asia, vladimir putin s invasion of ukraine remaining top of mind for president biden. putin s brutal and unprovoked war in ukraine has f
past 11 days in a row. american families forced to spend an average of $5,000 a year on gas compared to $2800 a year ago. interior secretary deb holland refusing to concede it is too big a burden to bear. americans are still recovering from this terrible pandemic and there are a lot of other world events that are making things difficult for all of us. so it sounds like you are unwilling to say that gas prices are too high. we re doing all we can, senator. dana: grady trimble is following the story from chicago. good morning. good morning. gas prices are expected to keep rising this summer so when interior secretary deb holland wouldn t acknowledge in that hearing that gas prices right now are too high, it certainly raised eyebrows. we re doing all we can, senator, production on federal lands is up. it s a 45% increase from 2020. that s new drilling. that s up. but the production is also up. it s at an all-time high. president biden is allowing drilling on federa