This archive report was first published on 11 August 2019.
US President Donald Trump has downplayed North Korea's latest missile test, saying it was not important, despite the country's leader Kim Jong Un supervising the launch of a 'new weapon'.
The test, which was the North's fifth in two weeks, was seen as a protest against the annual US-South Korea military drills that Pyongyang views as a threat.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, the missiles flew 400 kilometres (250 miles) before splashing down in the sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan.
Trump's comments came after he met with Kim in a historic summit in Singapore in June 2018, and despite a breakdown in talks since then, the US president has been reluctant to criticise the North Korean leader.
On Friday, Trump said he agreed with Kim's opposition to the war games, albeit for financial rather than military reasons, and indicated the missile launches were not important.
"I'll say it again. There have been no nuclear tests. The missile tests have all been short-range. No ballistic missile tests, no long-range missiles," Trump said.
However, analysts say Trump's downplaying of the launches is equivalent to endorsing the missile tests, and that North Korea has effectively been given a licence to fire short-range missiles.
North Korea's foreign ministry said Trump's comments effectively recognised the country's 'self-defensive rights' as a sovereign state to conduct 'small' missile tests.
Kim Jong Un's regime has been testing short-range missiles in recent weeks, with the latest launch coming on Saturday, August 10, 2019.
