Pyongyang’s relationships with the great powers have in many ways been front and center at the onset of the new year.

Speculation over the “when” and “where” for a second summit between the American and North Korean leadership has been ongoing, interrupted only by Kim Jong Un’s fourth meeting with Xi Jinping. Kim Yong Chol’s visit to the U.S., furthermore, has propelled conjecture over the immediate future of Pyongyang-Washington relations.

Trying to gauge the year ahead in the trans-national dynamics of the Korean security deadlock is futile at best. Developments within the first weeks of 2019, however, underscore key