. >> joining us now from beijing, janis mackey frayer, also with us is peter baker, "new york times"e house correspondent. janice, what more can you tell us about this meeting. it was on for more than three hours? >> reporter: they did high stakes with this meeting. the two men know each other well. they've talked on the phone before. but it was this face-to-face meeting with all of these thorny issues that they needed to discuss, things like trade, chips, the economy, taiwan, human rights, russia, the list goes on. and all of them coming with sticking points. the meeting even happened seemed to signal that both sides are looking to repair ties. the meeting came about after months of intense negotiations. on the meeting, president biden said at a news conference, quote, i didn't find him, xi jingping, more confrontational or more conciliatory. i found him the way he's always been, direct and straightforward. he followed up by saying i do not think there's any imminent attempt on the part of china to invade taiwan. taiwan did seem to dominate the conversation in this bilateral meeting

nbc's janis mackey frayer has been covered it for us. >> reporter: from shanghai, in the east, to the northwest, crowds swelled in defiance. spilling over to the heart of beijing. >> we want freedom. we want to be afraid. >> chanting for freedom from the grip of a covid policy that protesters say has worn on too long. >> nearly three years in, and china is still enforcing its no covid policy. as the government won't put up with any covid, none at all, and the case was found in an apartment building or factory and that entire city gets put into a forced lockdown. it has kept the case count low, much lower than the rest of the world, and it likely has saved many lives, but again, three years in, and the policy is seen as untenable and for some in china, cruel. which is what has led to these unprecedented protests. and we say unprecedented, because they are. since president xi solidified his control over china, no criticism has been tolerated. social media is blacked out. protesters are jailed. political opposition is silenced if it is allowed to exist at all. and yet, here we are, seein

joining us now from beijing is nbc news correspondent janis mackey frayer.you tell us about this missile test? >> reporter: jose, it appears to be one of north korea's most powerful weapons yet and icbm that flew 620 miles towards japan at high speed and what they call a lofted trajectory. it was fired up instead of out to avoid over flying neighboring countries. officials say given the flight data they're analyzing, they believe this icbm has the range to strike anywhere in the united states. and that is setting off alarm bells here. after the launch, the u.s. held joint military drills with both japan and south korea. leaders at the apex summit in thailand held an emergency meeting about north korea with vice presidentkamala harris calling the launch a brazen violation of u.n. resolutions and called on north korea to stop quote unlawful and destiebl -- destabilizing acts. president biden raised north korea in the meeting with xi jinping earlier in the week because china with russia has blocked any moves to sanction north korea at the u.n. security counsel.

nbc's janis mackey frayer has the details. >> reporter: this morning, an historic escalation along the korean peninsula. north korea firing at least 23 missiles overnight in quick succession. one aimed directly towards south korea, landing close to south korea's territorial waters for the first time since the country split. that triggered air raid sirens on an island. people had to take cover. the missiles going east and west, landing in waters around south korea and japan. then came the artillery. north korea firing more than 100 rounds into a buffer zone near the east coast. retaliating against the north korea, south korea fired three air-to-surface missiles and sent up fighter jets, saying its missiles also landed near the sea border. with tension edging ever hire, the u.s. secretary of state and the south korean government discussing possible responses. it's been a record year for north korea weapons testing, 28 so far. kim jong-un adamant to prove his program is thriving. thecoincidence. this week, the u.s. and south korea holding annual military drills meant to simulate what to d

nbc news foreign correspondent janis mackey frayer.aising speculation, i understand, about a possible succession plan in north korea. >> reporter: well, the images are fascinating because we haven't known that this child has existed before, and there they are, holding hands, she's wearing little red shoes, and they're watching the launch of this towering icbm. it's believed her name is juai. that information coming from dennis rodman after he visited pyongyang in 2013, but the question, willie, is why at this of all events did kim choose to reveal one of his children. and there are a lot of ways to look at it. that he may be telegraphing this message that there is a fourth generation power succession. it could also be that this was an attempt to humanize him, to soften his image. we saw that happen when his wife was eased into the picture back around 2011 or 2012. the officials in pyongyang have a very highly calibrated public messaging, and the higher the propaganda goes, the more weight that message carries, so the fact that kim unve

that it's got to change. >> nbc's janis mackey frayer, thank you very much for your reporting.eciate it. and joining us now, the president of the council on foreign relations, richard haass, and nbc news chief international correspondent keir simmons joins us as well. >> richard, you and i have been having this conversation for some time. it started three years ago on the front of your journal. it was the most exclusive journal. >> foreign affairs is what you're searching for, joe. >> yeah, kind of important. >> which you never let me write an article for. >> you have to subscribe first. >> i've got to pay my dues first, and then subscribe. exactly. so we joked about you had put the authoritarians on the cover. i said, richard, that's going to be like sport illustrated. it took four years, but you and i have been talking over the past six months that authoritarianism actually after having this moment three years ago is on the decline, and you tweeted last night something beautiful that sort of encapsulates a lot of what we have been saying. a month ago if you would have predict

nbc's janis mackey frayer, thank you very much for your reporting on this this morning.ng a little bit this morning, after fall to go an 11-month low, amid protests in china, and developments out of europe. joining us now, msnbc senior national correspondent brian sullivan. great to see you. let's start in china. >> it's been a while. >> it's been a while in person. >> since the before times. good to see you. >> way over there, how are you? >> good to see you, man. let's talk about link between the oil prices falling to an 11-month low yesterday and what janis was talking about, the covid lockdowns in china. >> here's a text i got from a friend who lives outside shanghai. this was today overnight. everyone in my neighborhood just went into lockdown. the building next to ours was taken to government quarantine facilities. taken to government quarantine facilities. >> the whole building, everybody that lives there. >> that was a text last night from a friend of mine in shanghai. china uses about 15% of the world's oil, when you think about the economy coming, not to a halt

nbc's janis mackey frayer joins us from beijing. good morning. how extraordinary are these protests? >> reporter: well, what's been remarkable is that zero covid as a policy has created this common denominator among people in china. where in every corner of the country, people of all backgrounds, all become brackets are all fed up in the same way. so we see these happening simultaneously in multiple cities was quite unprecedented. some dared to openly call for xi jinping to step down. that is unheard of in china. this swell of anger was triggered by a deadly apartment fire. fire crews three hours to put the flames out. we saw the videos emerging of candlelight vigils and the shows of frustration. because when we're talking about zero covid here, jose, we are talking about restrictions that control every aspect of daily life. there is this sprawling system of testing and quarantines and surveillance. and so people have this experience with the system. what they don't have is experience with the virus itself. because the government hasn't scaled up

nbc's janis mackey frayer has the details. >> reporter: unexpected lockdown at the happiest place onisitors barred from entering and leaving the theme park. those already inside ordered to stay put until they could show a negative cobe id test. videos showed big crowds held back. waiting inside quite some time, said this tourist. nearly 10:00 when he got out. same thing happened at disneyland a year ago and just last week universal studios in beijing forced to close, too, as much of the world is living with the pandemic, here china's zero strict covid rules still dominate daily life. in most cities tests needed every day to go to work, school and shopping controlled through a phone app. scanning in leaves a digital footprint. that can then be traced wherever you go. the constant restrictions taking a toll. over the weekend, videos appeared to show an exodus of workers from the foxconn factory will most iphones are made. the company announces bonuses to get them back, but will quarantine 200,000 workers on site. while another video shows covid positive factory workers wears hazmat sui

as nbc news foreign correspondent janis mackey frayer reports, the simmering anger over covid lockdownsjust part of what's at play. >> reporter: open defiance in cities across china, protesters lashing out against zero covid rules. let's go together, she chants, the demand for freedom from the excesses of covid controls, dragging cities to a standstill. they're chanting for the end of lockdowns, for the end of mandatory testing, all of the zero covid rules that have defined life here. in shanghai some protesters even dared to shout for leader xi jinping to step down. the national outcry triggered by a fire in xinjiang that killed 12 people trapped in their homes. candlelight vigils for the victims over the weekend grew for something else. no one is sure it can last. police flooded cities like wuhan and lanzhou, the reality of it all getting the world's attention, potentially impacting supply chains during the holiday shopping season. apple announcing production of the iphone 14 has suffered. small rallies of support have cropped up around the world, from australia to japan and the uk. t

nbc news foreign correspondent janis mackey frayer has the latest. >> reporter: chilling new detailshaos in seoul. police revealing the halloween crowd was up to 100,000 people before the stampede, many kramged into narrow alleyways and there were just 137 police officers assigned to the area. police acknowledging they had no guidelines to deal with the horror that unfolded. american janelle story was near the top of the alley showing people could barely move it was so packed. >> there was panic coming towards us. >> reporter: people were desperately giving cpr to victims on the ground. among the dead two young americans, anne gieske and steven blesi both 20-year-old students doing a semester abroad. she shared photos of them hiking and smiling for selfies just hours before the tragedy. many parents here flooding a community center to find support. >> truly heartbreaking. additionally, much of the world will be watching brazil today to see what outgoing jair bolsonaro will do. bolsonaro lost sunday's presidential runoff election to lula da silva by less than two points and so far he

. >>> joining me now, janis mackey frayer.hina this morning? it is an extraordinary thing to watch unfold. >> reporter: alex, the simultaneous protests happened in multiple cities around a single issue is really quite remarkable in a country where open defiance comes with a lot of risks. when we talk about zero covid, we're talking about a system that controls every aspect of daily life through this massive system of lockdowns, quarantines and restrictions. this has been china's way of dealing with the virus. the problem now facing xi jingping and the leadership here is that they're going to have to quell this unrest that is growing when it appears there does not seem to be a clear path of their own policy. >> reporter: this morning extraordinary scenes across china. protests against the covid rules. crowds swelled in defiance. spilling over to the heart of beijing. >> we want to be free! >> reporter: chanting for freedom from the grip of a covid policy that protestors say has warn on too long. >> they're calling for the end o

janis mackey frayer is in beijing with the latest. >> reporter: china's government tried tweaking itsy to help the economy here. but with cases at a record high, they're bearing down again with quarantines, lockdowns and mandatory testing. consumers in the u.s. are going to feel it. especially people wanting iphones after protests this week at apple's main supplier boiled over. chaotic scenes at the huge foxconn factor. according to workers, the protests were sparked by a pay dispute as well as covid rules at the plant which has been locked down for weeks. most of the people protesting were new hires recruited after an exodus from the factory ahead of the lockdown last month. foxconn has issued a statement apologizing and offering bonuses to who new workers who want to quit and that's posing a major disruption to apple's production ahead of a busy holiday season. delivery times for iphones will be impacted too because the city where the factory is located is also under lockdown. in a statement to nbc news, apple says it has team members on the ground adding we're reviewing the situati

nbc's janis mackey frayer has that story. >> reporter: the chinese government has tried tweak can itsero covid-19 policy to help the economy here but with cases at a record high, they're bearing down again. and consumers in the u.s. are going to feel it, especially people wanting iphones after protests this week at apple's main supplier boiled over. this morning covid cases hitting an all time high across china. the outbreak triggering fresh lockdowns here, along with rising anger. and protests. violence rocking the huge foxcon factory campus where the world's iphones are made. videos there showing workers there clashing with police, wearing haz-mat suits. the chaos was sparked by a pay dispute according to workers, along with covid rules at the plant which is under lockdown. it is unbelievable this would happen inside china, says a foxcon worker who was there. he also claims thousands like him didn't get sick pay when they were stuck in quarantine with covid. in a statement about the arrest, the company says it's working with employees and the government to prevent similar incidents

many parents here flooding a community center to find support. >> nbc's janis mackey frayer with thatorse. >>> let's turn to ukraine, the mayor of kyiv says energy and water supply has been restored after yesterday's shut down, but many parts of the country remain in the dark as russia continues it attacks on ukraine's infrastructure. nbc's molly hunter has more. >> reporter: this morning, the capital city recovering from major attacks on critical infrastructure, the russian military essentially laying siege to cities across the country. late last night, president putin threatening this is not all russian could have done. a senior u.s. military official telling nbc news monday's strikes had widespread impact on ukraine's power grid. a senior u.s. defense official adding they're directly harming the civilian population. also new overnight, a senior u.s. defense official, and senior u.s. military official telling nbc news u.s. military personnel are now inspecting ukrainian weapons inside ukraine. in an attempt to track the billions of dollars of u.s. weapons. nbc news exclusively repor

jinping himself, who has refused to abandon his pursuit of zero covid cases at virtually any cost janis mackey frayer has our reporting tonight from beijing >> reporter: tonight open defiance in cities across china. protesters lashing out against zero-covid rules. "let's go together," she chants the demand for freedom fr the excesses of covid controls dragging cities to a standstill they're chanting for the end of lockdowns, for the end of mandatory testing, all of the zero-covid rules that have defined life here. in shanghai some protesters even dared to shout for leader xi jinping to step down the national outcry triggered by a fire in xinjiang that killed ten people trapped in their homes. videos emerged of candlelight vigils for the victims but through the weekend grew into something else >> we want freedom >> reporter: no one is sure it can last today police flooded cities like wuhan and hangzhou to quash more rallies. the rarity of it all getting the world's attention, potentially impacting supply chains during the holiday shopping season apple already announcing production of the iphone 14 has

celebrations in seoul has ris en to 156 after a woman died from her injuries in the hospital our janis mackey frayer has the latest on the fallout. >> reporter: chilling new details of the chaos in seoul. police revealing the halloween crowd was up to 100,000 people before the stampede. many crammed into narrow alley ways, and there were just 137 police officers assigned to the area police acknowledging they had no guidelines to deal with the horrors that unfolded. american janel story was near the top of the alley her video showing people could barely move it was so packed >> there was panic coming towards us >> reporter: people were desperately giving cpr to victims on the ground. among the dead, two young americans. ann gieske and steven blesi. two students abroad. she shared photos of them hiking and smiling for self eies hours before the tragedy all the victims have been identify now a vast majority were m tin their 20s, most of them young women. >>> with only one week left until the midterm elections, members of both major parties are calling for calm and civility, this as a suspect accused of

for the latest, let's turn to nbc correspondent janis mackey frayer there is a lot at stake here when it comes to things like trade, technology, human rights. take taiwan, for instance. will mr. biden be able to mend ties amid these tensions >> reporter: frances, the stakes going into this meeting are very high it's the first time that president biden will meet face-to-face with xi jinping since mr. biden took office. they've talked on the phone before but the list of issues that ar friction points is a very long one, and they will be dealing with them face-to-face things like train, semiconductors, taiwan, russia and ukraine, human rights. these are all very contentious issues and coming together over the course of several months, and very difficult negotiations to make this meeting even happen. a senior white house official saying that the goal, what the u.s. wants is to ensure that competition with china does not veer into conflict with china. so underscoring the sense that it's not a cold war, but it certainly has the optics and feel of one. for xi jinping heading into this meetin