Strategic patience is failing.
North Korea’s Party Congress concluded after four days of nonstop drama. It’s everything we hoped for, and more: secrecy, pomp, nuclear weapons, and even the detainment and expulsion of BBC correspondent Rupert Wingfield-Hayes. One announcement, however, was reported without much fanfare: Kim Jong-Un’sfive-year economic plan. Admittedly, economic plans are not as thrilling as nuclear weapons and expulsion of Western journalists, but this could be the most underreported story thus far. Part of the reason is that when the announcement was made, it was devoid of any details or specifics. The other part is that economic progress just doesn’t seem very North Korean.