In the wake of U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s trip to Taiwan, China responded not only by firing a barrage of missiles into waters surrounding the island, but also by suspending or canceling cooperation with the U.S. on a range of issues — a development that could have repercussions for the Korean Peninsula.

Beyond just being bad news for joint U.S.-China action on issues ranging from counternarcotics to climate change, Beijing’s growing animosity toward Washington could provide Pyongyang with additional leeway for its illicit overseas operations and exacerbate the human rights situation of the country’s people, experts told NK News.