Following through on its official threat in the wake of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) condemnation of its missile launch in early April, Pyongyang detonated its second nuclear test on May 25. It has also reportedly launched several short-range missiles. Condemnation at the UN will almost certainly follow, as will further provocative actions by North Korea. The question will be how to stop the escalatory cycle and return to a path of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.