Much, then, depends on the Chinese, whose self-defeating regional diplomacy has managed to push a listless and defense-shy Japanese government into closer cooperation with the US on security matters, and has inspired South Korea to seek out strategic partnerships with other Asian powers, including India. One hopes that North Korea’s recent behavior – the sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan in March, and now the shelling of Yeonpyeong island (which followed a supposedly “accidental” shooting incident in the DMZ in October) – will focus minds in Beijing.