Leslie H. Gelb says North Korea's attack on a South Korean island likely won't escalate into a full-blown battle, but war is closer than in decades.

Peter M. Beck argues that the attack on Yeonpyeong is a sign of internal pressures on the North Korean regime--and a warning that America's current approach to the region isn't working.

Further provocations by North Korea as well as other dangerous military interactions on or around the Korean peninsula remain a serious risk and carry the danger of unintended escalation.

CFR's Scott A. Snyder discusses the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force Report on U.S. Policy Toward the Korean Peninsula with students, as part of CFR's Academic Conference Call series.

Learn more about CFR's Academic Initiative.

With Tuesday's military promotions, North Korea's Kim Jong-Il created a triumvirate to succeed him. But this "collective leadership" will not change relations with the United States anytime soon, says  CFR expert Sue M. Terry.

Noah Feldman explains why the draw-down of troops in Iraq is a beginning and not an end.

Tensions on the Korean peninsula need to be managed carefully so that growing South Korean and U.S. intolerance for Korean belligerence doesn't lead to unintended military escalation, say CFR's Scott Snyder and Paul Stares.

Korean Peninsula tensions are high, in part fueled by U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises. Experts say the United States must continue to work toward North Korea's denuclearization and prepare for volatility with a leadership change in Pyongyang.

China is unlikely to exert more pressure on North Korea, so Washington should redirect its own role in brokering inter-Korean peace and engaging Pyongyang, says CFR's Nicole E. Lewis.

Members of the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force on U.S. Policy Toward the Korean Peninsula discuss the findings and recommendations of the report.

This Task Force is made possible in part by generous support from the Korea Foundation.

Members of the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force on U.S. Policy Toward the Korean Peninsula discuss the findings and recommendations of the report.

This Task Force is made possible in part by generous support from the Korea Foundation.

The Obama administration should mount a more vigorous effort to address North Korea's nuclear weapons program, says Charles L. (Jack) Pritchard, co-chairman of a new CFR Independent Task Force report.

Members of the CFR-sponsored Independent Task Force on U.S. Policy Toward the Korean Peninsula discuss the findings and recommendations of the report.

This Task Force is made possible in part by generous support from the Korea Foundation.

This Task Force report identifies three elements of an internationally coordinated response to the threat posed by North Korea: first, denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and an approach that attempts to resolve rather than simply manage the nuclear issue; second, regional cohesion, enabled by close U.S.-South Korea relations; and third, China's cooperation and active engagement.

Scott A. Snyder says that unless evidence of leadership instability in North Korea is concrete, diplomacy with the North must continue.

Paul B. Stares argues that the World Cup offers an unparalleled stage for shaming and further isolating North Korea in response to its sinking of a South Korean naval vessel.