Views expressed in Opinion articles are exclusively the authors’ own and do not represent the views of NK News.

If North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s remarks to the Workers’ Party Central Committee in late December was a precedent for what is coming down the pike, we could be experiencing a long, cold, dead winter with diplomacy shivering in the wilderness.

While it’s true Kim didn’t shut the door completely during his address, he couldn’t have made his contempt for the current process any clearer: at this point in time, he is preparing his country for a year of sanctions