Iran and North Korea: trick or treat?

SYRIA'S Bashar al-Assad is begging for a trip to Pyongyang as Donald Trump prepares for a summit with Kim Jong Un. Hollywood would reject such a script as outlandish, yet the scenario offers a reminder of the connections among Syria, Iran and North Korea - and some justification for different treatment by the current US administration. The US president expresses hope of signing a denuclearisation agreement with North Korea after tearing up the US pact with Iran, inspiring easy comments on the irrationality of Mr Trump's foreign policies. Breaking the convergence between North Korea and Iran may prove essential.

The relationship between Iran and North Korean proliferation is deep and longstanding. The parallel between the two nations is real, with mutual help and cover at critical junctures, along with a converging connection to Syria, and separating the proliferators makes sense. This was true in 2017, when Iran announced resumption of its long-range missile programme, a decision publicly floated at the height of the international stand-off with North Korea over its missile launches and nuclear tests. During this period, according to a UN report, two North Korean ships delivered crates to Syria's Scientific Studies and Research Center, the same chemical weapons research centre destroyed by a joint US-France-UK strike in April - a detail adding intriguing context to Mr Assad's plan to visit Pyongyang.

HOLES IN NON-PROLIFERATION POLICIES