“...The prime suspect for what caused the latest flareup on N. Korea is probably Xi....”
For sure. Xi has Rocketman on a short leash. Don’t doubt it. Been that way for a long time. Food, weapons, energy etc. all flow from the ChiComs.
The ChiComs do not want Korea unified period. They NK will get swallowed like East Germany and they lose the peninsula to the west. They are going to control much of this going forward.