38 North is one of the more respected organizations devoted to analysis about North Korea. This is some powerful analysis here. Understanding the Asian mind takes years and years of experience and maybe can never be completely accomplished by westerners.
North Korea may be so convinced that its strategic position vs. the US has changed for the better that it might be willing to step back from the brink of nuclear war and settle for “practical equilibrium” with the US.
Robert Carlin, a veteran Korea analyst writing for website 38 North, says that since two successful ICBM launches last July, Pyongyang may have come to the heady conclusion that it has reached the “final stage” in bolstering the nuclear force. Read more here.