US carrot and stick approach to North Korea is clumsy but significant
(The Guardian North Korea)

Behind the rhetoric and mind games, Trump depends almost entirely on China not to have Pyongyang call his bluffIt used to be North Korea´s intentions that baffled analysts. Now, amid wild talk of thermonuclear war between the US and Kim Jong-un´s isolated regime, it is contradictory signals from the Trump administration that present the bigger challenge.Mike Pence, Trump´s vice-president, deepened confusion over US policy at the weekend, insisting repeatedly in Australia that `all options are on the table`, including military action. Related: Mike Pence in Australia says US and allies ready to tackle North Korea Related: UK freezes assets of North Korean company based in south London Related: North Korea detains American citizen as Japanese ships join US war games Continue reading...