North Korea’s basic foreign policy aim since 1953 has been to maximize division between the countries that surround it, while also trying to extort as much free help as it can from ‘allies,’ rivals, and enemies alike.

This extortion racket worked quite well throughout the Cold War, as Kim Il Sung conspicuously refused to pick sides in the Sino-Soviet split, and has worked reasonably well since 2008, as China and America have been unable to agree on what to do about the North Korean issue.

There have been periods when Pyongyang has been less fortunate. After the collapse of the