North Korea fired a missile that failed immediately after launch early on Thursday, the U.S. and South Korean militaries said, hours after the two countries agr

Japan may accelerate around $1 billion of planned spending to upgrade its ballistic missile defenses in the wake of rocket tests suggesting North Korea is close to fielding a more potent medium-range missile, three government sources told Reuters.

Since North Korea conducts nuclear tests frequently and countries like the U.S., Japan, South Korea have strengthened their military deployments in and around the Korean Peninsula, China is facing unprecedented difficulties and challenges there.

In the face of risks and disagreements, the two sides should restart negotiations, and sincerely embark on the road of resolving both the unsettled state of war from the 1950s and the current stalemate over the THAAD deployment in South Korea.

The United States is investigating a number of Chinese companies for suspected breaches of sanctions on North Korea, and Chinese banks and firms should understand that dealing with North Korea is "risky," a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday.

The U.S. and China are locked in negotiations over curbing North Korea’s energy trade in response to its fifth nuclear test last month, according to four diplomats from United Nations Security Council countries with direct knowledge of the talks. The world’s two biggest economies -- both of whom can veto any resolution -- are discussing restrictions on North Korea’s trade in coal, iron ore and crude oil, according to the diplomats, who asked not to be named because the discussions are private. Other nations also considering separate sanctions against North Korea once the Security Council acts, the diplomats said. The U.S. and its allies are seeking to further tighten sanctions against Kim Jong Un’s regime to prod him into abandoning a pursuit of nuclear weapons that has only intensified in recent years, with the latest test coming Sept. 9. The measures stand little chance of success without support from China, which has kept its neighbor from collapsing to avoid both a humanitarian crisis and the presence of American and South Korean troops on its border.

The United States reserves the right to punish Chinese companies that violate U.N. sanctions on North Korea if Chinese authorities don't take action, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday.

Pledge made during meeting between China’s premier and Barack Obama at the UN amid global concern over Pyongyang’s nuclear test earlier this month

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Japanese counterpart that China opposes "unhelpful" unilateral sanctions on North Korea but will work within the United Nations to formulate a necessary response to its fifth nuclear test.

“Strategic Patience” has not served the US well as a policy, nor has a collection of unilaterally pursued sanctions, diplomatic pressure, isolation and military deterrence. Even late in a president’s second term, there is an opportunity to shift gears and seek a new approach.