Throughout his seven months in office President Donald Trump has made statements on critical issues that don't seem to align with – and at times even contradict – those of his most senior officials. Perhaps no situation has demonstrated a greater need for unity than the ongoing crisis with North Korea, yet the administration again seems to be speaking with more than one voice.

White House statements, tweets from the president, initiatives announced by his diplomats and recent military activity regarding North Korea in recent days appear disjointed, raising deep concerns that the Trump administration is confusing America's friends and needlessly angering its foes.

In the latest development, the U.S. Air Force on Wednesday test launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California – the fourth such test this year. While the test had been previously scheduled, Air Force officials announced it in the context of an ICBM test by North Korea last week – its second in July – that has prompted international backlash.

"While not a response to recent North Korean actions, the test demonstrates that the United States' nuclear enterprise is safe, secure, effective and ready to be able to deter, detect and defend against attacks on the United States and its allies," officials said in a statement.

The message of military preparedness came hours after rare public comments Tuesday afternoon by Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, who called for an era of "peaceful pressure" on North Korea that would involve negotiations with the U.S. and with China. He stated that any talks must conclude with the complete dismantlement of Pyongyang's nuclear weapons program and insisted that the U.S. was not seeking regime change in or war with North Korea.

Tillerson's statement, however, appeared at odds with recent comments from Trump and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, who said "the time for talk is over" in declining to bring the issue before the United Nations Security Council. Trump and Haley have also criticized what they consider China's refusal to cooperate with U.S. calls to pressure North Korea into compliance. Trump tweeted Tuesday the U.S. will "no longer allow" China to refuse to cooperate in containing North Korea, and Haley tweeted Sunday that China "must decide if it is finally willing to take this vital step" – both seemingly contradicting Tillerson's remarks Tuesday in which he said, "We've been very clear with the Chinese we certainly don't blame the Chinese for the situation in North Korea."

Julie Smith, a former deputy national security adviser to former Vice President Joe Biden, says such mixed messages put the U.S. on uncertain footing with enemies and allies alike.

"Adversaries love nothing more than when Washington's message is muddled and contradictory. They know that signals uncertainty about U.S. intent and resolve," she says. "By contrast, allies hate that kind of uncertainty because it undermines U.S. commitments to regional security."

White House staffs work particularly hard to ensure the messages their administrations release publicly, particularly on national security matters, are consistent and clear, adds Smith, now a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security.

"Sadly, the inexperience of the Trump administration is showing how many members of the president's national security team have failed to learn that lesson."

This week isn't the first time the Trump White House has been unclear about its stance on a consequential foreign issue.

For example, at the beginning of the ongoing dispute between Qatar and a bloc led by Saudi Arabia – both critical U.S. allies – Tillerson urged calm and offered to help broker a solution. Trump, however, indicated he believes Qatar is a state sponsor of terror, as Saudi Arabia has insisted, and said publicly the U.S. could withstand losing that alliance.

The U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom, in another example, publicly praised the mayor of London following a deadly terrorist attack in the U.K. capital in June. Trump, however, criticized the mayor, Sadiq Khan, for what he called the British leader's politically correct policies that allowed the attack to happen.

Trump and Tillerson have reportedly disagreed previously on issues ranging from climate change to State Department staff hires. Tillerson has even reportedly considered leaving his position by the end of the year, though he has said publicly he plans to stay in the job. But their differing statements on North Korea could be their most consequential disagreement to date.

Trump has not yet faced a genuine crisis, one that would fundamentally threatened the U.S. homeland or its interests abroad and would require a firm and clear White House response. That could change quickly in dealing with North Korea. The Defense Intelligence Agency now believes Pyongyang could mount a nuclear weapon atop such a missile as soon as next year, according to a Washington Post report.

"There is a bit of confusion on this policy," Michael O'Hanlon, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, told WTOP-FM in Washington, D.C., Wednesday morning of the Trump administration's approach to North Korea in recent days.

North Korea has previously blasted U.S. attempts to rein in its nuclear program.

"The U.S. trumpeting about war and threat to impose extreme sanctions on the DPRK only emboldens the latter and provides further justification for its access to nukes," one of North Korea's state news services posted on Tuesday, referring to the country using an acronym for its proper name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

For its part, China in an editorial in its state-run Xinhua news agency responded Monday to Trump's remarks, saying "emotional venting cannot become a guiding policy for solving the nuclear issue on the peninsula," according to a translation by The New York Times.

China has perhaps the most economic and diplomatic influence over North Korea of any country, though analysts believe it is focused mainly on stability on the Korean peninsula, not on instituting change.