North Korea has done its best to make sure it is not forgotten in recent years, even as COVID-19, war in Ukraine and Gaza, tensions over Taiwan and other crises have dominated the international agenda.

And with Pyongyang continuing military testing and hostile statements since January, the signs suggest the regime again seeks to ramp up pressure around elections in the U.S.

In a way, the DPRK has rewound the clock back to 2017 after ditching its self-imposed moratorium on nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests introduced during the summits of 2018. The country conducted