Negotiations between the DPRK and the U.S. have gone nowhere for over a year. Pyongyang is ramping up tensions with Seoul. And a new "strategic weapon" promised by North Korea could likely emerge at an upcoming military parade in October -- or even sooner.

So where do we go from here? Longtime analyst and North Korea watcher Ankit Panda has long argued that the solution to the North Korea problem lies not in the pursuit of an unattainable denuclearization, but in managing Pyongyang's ambitions through arms control and trust-building.