Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- April 21, 2017

Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

Mark Thompson, Bloomberg: What to Do About the Koreas

No good U.S. military options exist, and the consequences of Trump’s confrontational policy aren’t yet clear.

Rolling a painted mock-up of an intercontinental ballistic missile across a Pyongyang plaza before 100,000 cheering regime loyalists is a lot different from sending the real thing across the Pacific. North Korean scientists do know the difference. They’ve been slowly learning about the challenges posed by aerodynamic stresses, unstable rocket fuel—and possible U.S. cybermischief. So President Kim Jong Un’s April 15 dud launch, no matter what caused it to sputter, surely taught his engineers something. Failures often do. That’s why they test again and again, despite the complaints and threats of the country’s neighbors and the U.S. The North plans weekly missile tests, a top official said on April 17. This obduracy is why Pyongyang has come this far—and why the world is stuck with this crisis.

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Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- April 21, 2017

North Korea: Is War Near? -- Rod Lyon, The Strategist

What Would the Second Korean War Look Like? -- Franz-Stefan Gady, The Diplomat

A reckless North Korea remains China’s useful ally -- James Kynge, Financial Times

Is Iran Pushing the Envelope on Its Nuclear Deal? -- Jenna Lifhits, Weekly Standard

With Iran in His Crosshairs, Trump Has One Risky Chip to Play -- Patrick Smith, Fiscal Times

Is tripartite alliance emerging between US, Egypt and Jordan? -- Khalid Hassan, Al-Monitor

Afghanistan: Time Bomb In A Major Geopolitical Game -- Polina Tikhonova, Value Walk

Camouflaged Aggression: A Strategic Shift in Russia’s Cyber Activity -- Sarah Geary, Cipher Brief

Russia’s Shadow-War in a Wary Europe -- Sebastian Rotella, ProPublica

Extremists on Left and Right Push France to the Brink -- Ullrich Fichtner and Julia Amalia Heyer, Spiegel Online

The Insane French Elections That Could F*ck Us All -- Christopher Dickey and Erin Zaleski, Daily Beast

Why Are Protests Rocking Venezuela Now? -- VOA/AP

After Nine Deaths and 20 Days of Protests, Has Venezuela Reached a Tipping Point? -- Sofia Lotto Persio, Newsweek

This May Be Venezuela’s Tiananmen Square Moment -- Ana Quintana, Daily Signal

From France to the U.S., why 'self-made' politicians are winning -- John lloyd, Reuters

How America Shed the Taboo Against Preventive War -- Peter Beinart, The Atlantic

Google is a monopoly — and it's crushing the internet -- Ryan Cooper, The Week