December 2019 started with a rise in tension when the DPRK foreign ministry warned of an unspecified “Christmas gift” for the U.S. ahead of the expiration of Kim Jong Un’s year-end deadline.

Following up with two subsequent rocket engine tests at the Sohae Satellite Launching Ground, the stage was set for a number of government and independent observers to forewarn of the possibility of a possible North Korean ICBM test to coincide with Christmas.

However, Christmas day eventually passed with neither weapons testing nor the issuance of any notable anti-American rhetoric.

While