Amid Signs of a Thaw in North Korea, Tensions Bubble Up

A tentative move toward diplomacy over the confrontation with North Korea has begun, though that hardly means the tension is evaporating.

In a village on their heavily militarized border, North and South Korean officials opened talks Tuesday, ostensibly over possible North Korean participation in the coming South Korean Olympics. South Korea would like the talks to expand beyond that, toward finding broader ways to lower tensions.

But as just one sign of how fraught the situation remains, simply consider this: U.S. officials are quietly debating whether it’s possible to mount a limited military strike against North Korean sites without igniting an all-out war on the Korean Peninsula.