Sec. of Defense Hagel: North Korea 'Close to a Dangerous Line'

With mobile missile launchers on its east coast and missiles believed to be fueled and ready for launch, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel warns that North Korea is “skating very close to a dangerous line.”

Agreeing with an unnamed Pentagon official who spoke earlier in the week, Hagel said the North Koreans could launch an attack at “any time.” He said the missiles they could launch are intermediate-range, believed to be capable of striking up to 2,500 miles away.

South Korea is taking the imminent nature of these things very seriously and has “deployed three naval destroyers, an early warning surveillance aircraft, and a land-based radar system.”

Japan, too, has “deployed missile interceptors in key locations around Tokyo.”

Speaking to what the U.S. will do if North Korea launches its missiles, Hagel said simply, “[The U.S.] has every capacity… to protect this country and our allies.”