KOREAN PENINSULA  The recently-appointed U.S. special envoy for North Korea Sung Kim embarked on a five-day trip to Seoul, meeting his South Korean and Japanese counterparts. Crisis Group expert Chris Green says that the new envoy took the opportunity to reiterate the U.S.'s openness to unconditional talks with North Korea; for its part, Pyongyang had recently indicated readiness for both “dialogue and confrontation” with Washington. While Pyongyang’s immediate reaction was to caution the U.S. against hoping for an imminent breakthrough, the deep economic distress inside North Korea may change its leadership's political calculus, potentially increasing its willingness to engage diplomatically in the hope of getting more aid.

LIBYA  Representatives of Libya’s new interim national unity government joined foreign stakeholders at an international conference co-sponsored by the UN and Germany in Berlin on Wednesday. The gathering aimed to renew foreign commitment to supporting Libya's peace process, with a special emphasis on holding elections at the end of 2021 and encouraging the departure of foreign forces and mercenaries. Crisis Group expert Claudia Gazzini says the conference was a welcome initiative to inject new dynamism into a languid political process and the UN's struggling mediation effort. Yet the absence of clear operational plans and disagreements between foreign governments on how to implement and operationalise the political, military and financial tracks that form the backbone of the peace process are likely to hinder tangible progress.