The U.S. State Department will send special representative for North Korea policy Joseph Yun to Japan and Thailand from Monday to Friday, simultaneous to a four-day visit by South Korean President Moon Jae-in to Beijing, it was announced last week.

The timing and destinations of the two visits are notable, coming less than three weeks after North Korea tested its new Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and declared “completing the state nuclear force”.

“Special Representative for North Korea Policy Joseph Yun will…meet with government officials to discuss ways to strengthen the pressure campaign following the DPRK’s latest ballistic missile test,”