the geopolitical gain here and the timing of this. would you consider the timing of this launch to coincide with prime minister abe s visit to the united states? it could very well be that. there s always a political element to north korea s detonations of nuclear devices and tests of missiles. we also have to remember there s another story here. north koreans tested a musodan missile. the question that trump officials and others should be asking is what s going on between north korea and iran. for the last two decades we ve known they have a joint missile program. i think we re starting to see the fruits of that effort. this is what i m curious about, especially when you take the president s response, very measured. we had guests in the last hour that said when it comes to a measured approach in this missile test that he welcomed that, thinking it was the right
country. but what really worries people, particularly the u.s. defense officials, is that the north koreans appear to be trying to develop a longer range nuclear capable missile. kim jong-un, leader of north korea, said recently they re in the final stages of developing that kind of a missile. that said, this does not appear to have been a test with a missile of that kind of capability. so this may have been as much a political act as a military one. back to you. nbc s keir simmons in seoul, south korea. keir, thank you. last year north korea launched two similar ballistic missiles in the sea of japan. in september, the country is believed to have conducted its fifth test of a nuclear device. what does this most recent launch signal about their capabilities? gordon chang, author of nuclear showdown: north korea takes on the world.
government official confirmed by nbc that intermediate range ballistic missile. last night president trump in florida with japanese prime minister shinzo abe said the u.s. stands behind japan 1 hundr100%. more snow is expected in new england along with strong winds and coastal flooding. the trump administration is standing strong in its defense of the president and his top adviser, kellyanne conway after comments they made surrounding ivanka trump s brand last week. white house senior policy adviser steven miller insisted it was being blown out of proportion. the president stood up for a member of his family and the white house counselor made a
resolutions, saying in part it shows north korea s, quote, fanatically obsessed with nuclear and ballistic missile development. keir simmons has more now from the korean peninsula. reporter: view many people here believe this was a test not just of the north korean missile but of president trump himself. this projectile was fired and it s believed by the u.s. to have been an intermediate range ballistic missile, fired from the northwest of north korea. it traveled around 310 miles toward japan before landing in the sea short of japanese waters. but just as president trump was meeting with the japanese prime minister. south korea has condemned the test and said that it believes that this was a deliberate attempt to challenge the new administration s tough line. remember, the defense secretary was here earlier this month, vowing to strengthen south korea s defenses and remember, too, that 28,500 u.s. service men and women are based in this
have been skating very close to a dangerous line. reporter: there is some anxiety growing on the streets and in the subways of seoul. amid south korean news reports that emergency threat levels jumped to watchcon 2, which is one step away from war. even as koreans went about their daily routines, young koreans, who is lived through the endless propaganda and missile tests for decades, now even they are starting to wonder about jim jong-un. he is very crazy. he s very crazy? yes. reporter: parents are getting nervous. sae-jun kim told me for the first time in this conflict, she will not take her son to kindergarten. i want my kids to be with me. reporter: if it happens the missile would be a mid range, the musodan, never before tested in flight. it is powerful enough to travel more than 2,000 miles, putting u.s. bases in okinawa or guam within its reach. its path could be over japan which is on high alert.