It's not rare for relationships to go through a bit of a roller coaster in the summer. As the heat rises, tensions can flare between even the most solid couple.

President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un are no exception. Over the past few months, Un has fired off multiple rockets, violating international law. Trump has then worked overtime to downplay how big a deal the launches are.

The two world leaders' "surprise" meeting in June was a whirlwind series of historic firsts. In the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea, Trump and Kim spoke briefly. Trump stepped into the North's territory, a first for a sitting US president, while Kim walked into the South's for only the second time. With cameras flashing, the two men praised each other and promised things would be different.

Then, the missiles started flying.

Since July 25, North Korea has launched short-range missiles more than half a dozen times. The lack of a response from the US, experts say, has only encouraged further testing and given North Korea the green light to keep upgrading its arsenal. On Monday evening in the US, Tuesday in East Asia, North Korea shot yet another pair of projectiles into the sea — the country's eighth missile test since the meeting.

While none of the missiles tested are a direct threat to the US, like the ones North Korea tested in 2017, they’re still making Pyongyang’s shorter-range missiles more accurate and harder to track. This threatens US allies like Japan and South Korea.

Here's a rundown of every launch so far since the DMZ meeting — and how Trump has responded.



July 25

The first launch came just under a month after the meeting between Trump and Kim, as talks over North Korea's nuclear weapons program remained stalled.

Experts determined that the two projectiles fired into the East Sea were likely short-range missiles, though one was possibly a new design based on how long it flew. They considered it a "solemn warning" against the US and South Korea holding military exercises. The launch also came shortly after US National Security Advisor John Bolton, whose beef with the North Koreans is well-established, met with his counterpart in South Korea.

When asked about it the next day, Trump was Extremely Chill about the whole situation when talking to reporters.

"Well, you said it: They’re short-range missiles," he said. "And my relationship is very good with Chairman Kim. And we’ll see what happens. But they are short-range missiles, and many people have those missiles."

The president also dismissed the idea that the missiles could be a threat to US allies, namely South Korea and Japan.

"Well, he didn’t say — he didn’t say a warning to the United States, I can tell you that," he said. "He didn’t say a warning to the United States. But they have their disputes. The two of them have their disputes. They’ve had them for a long time. But he didn’t say that. But they are short-range missiles and very standard missiles."

July 30

Pyongyang popped off two more missiles into the sea. They weren't a threat to South Korea but still were not great. North Korea's state-run KCNA outlet said that the launches were Kim guiding a test of "newly developed large-caliber multiple launch guided rocket system."

The launches came as members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) were gathering in Thailand. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo assured reporters that while talks between the US and North Korea over the latter's nuclear weapons were stalled now, Kim had said when he met with Trump at the DMZ that they would "start in a few weeks."

Pompeo, who was scheduled to meet with a North Korean delegation at that meeting, was left waiting when the delegation opted to skip out.

Just a few hours before the launches, Trump reminded reporters about his relationship with Kim: "My relationship with Kim Jong Un is a very good one, as I’m sure you’ve seen. ... So we’ll see. I have a good relationship with him. I like him; he likes me. We’ll see what happens."

Aug. 1

What's that? More missiles? Yes, just two days later, North Korea launched another two missiles, likely another test of the new short-range missiles.

But the president seemed determined not to give it much of his attention. "Short-range missiles," Trump said to reporters when departing the White House later that day. "We never made an agreement on that. I have no problem. We’ll see what happens. But these are short-range missiles. They’re very standard."

The next day, Trump took to Twitter to again praise his relationship with Kim and the chairman's "beautiful vision" for his country: