North Korea’s recent tests of ballistic and long-range cruise missiles, and its apparent restart of the plutonium-producing reactor at Yongbyon, threaten to exacerbate a serious foreign policy challenge for the Biden administration.

Despite this, the U.S. has yet to outline a proactive strategy for principled engagement with Pyongyang, even while continuing to pay lip service to such diplomacy.

After the Yongbyon restart, U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the news underscored “the urgent need for dialogue and the urgent need for diplomacy.” Yet days later, the Biden administration extendedTrump-era restrictions on American passport holders’ travel to North Korea,