Heightened U.S. military deployments on the Korean Peninsula will only exacerbate the regional security dilemma that affects China, Russia and the DPRK. Meanwhile, exclusivity between the United States and ROK in some trade sectors will be hard to pull off.

South Korea is signaling a dramatic reorientation in its foreign policy, and it could become a key player in an expanded Quad platform.

As it grows stronger, South Korea naturally wants to play a bigger role in world affairs. But drawing close to the U.S. in all fields to elevate its importance will ultimately constrain its diplomatic space and flexibility.

With America distracted by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the ICBM on the Korean Peninsula is not getting much attention. But the problem won’t go away without judicious action on both sides.

With the United States maintaining a hostile stance, the DPRK faces a bleak choice: either capitulate to U.S. nuclear and missile demands or try to unnerve the U.S. with a show of force. It is likely to try the latter first.

China and the United States should cooperate to remove the fundamental causes of failure — lack of trust, differing definitions of denuclearization, timetables and peace mechanisms — while accounting for the DPRK’s wariness of the so-called Libya model.

A fundamental shift in thinking is needed under which inspections become an interactive, two-way process. The accusatory hunt for a presumed cheater that has been used in the past needs to change. What's needed is a process that builds trust and provides incentives for cooperation.

The termination of the U.S.-South Korea’s Revised Missile Guidelines signals a new phase in two countries’ relations, further complicating China’s role on the Korean Peninsula.

Although bilateral relations face many difficulties this year, it’s possible — so long as the DPRK and the ROK understand and respect each other — to seize strategic opportunities for a new phase of reconciliation and cooperation. In that case, the re-emergence of the Peninsula Spring may be expected.

The country unveiled its economic approach at the Eighth National Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea. It faces serious obstacles, starting with its emphasis on self-reliance and an inefficient planned economy.