Wake up, before it's too late

Has Pyongyang fallen off the rails? Even China, North Korea's "babysitter," has lost the ability to control the recalcitrant nation. Beijing, the closest ally of the isolated communist regime in Pyongyang, took an unusual step on Tuesday by joining Russia and the West in issuing strong condemnations of North Korea's third nuclear test since 2006. For once, the world was united on Tuesday, but it was too late. This is certainly something to keep in mind when it comes to the Iranian nuclear issue.

Over the course of the past week, Chinese media warned North Korea and threatened that the country would pay a heavy price if it conducted another nuclear test. China is the oxygen source for the Pyongyang regime; China provides 80 percent of North Korea's consumer goods. North Korea, however, was not deterred. This is the way things have worked since the cease-fire that ended the Korean War six decades ago: The world has allowed the monster known as North Korea to develop into its current form. North Korea knows that Beijing is more fearful of a collapse of the regime in Pyongyang, and the millions of migrants who would flood into China as a result, than it is of a nuclear test.

The West should be concerned about the lack of chemistry between Pyongyang and Beijing. China warmly welcomed Kim Jong Un when he took over North Korea in Dec. 2011 after his father Kim Jong Il died. But in return, China got a North Korean ballistic missile test this past December and the powerful nuclear test on Tuesday. Kim Jong Un has also not yet visited China.

Washington was unable to prevent the transformation of North Korea into a nuclear power. In the Obama era, America is seeking to minimize clashes. But Asia is Obama's top priority, even above the Middle East. The inability to restrain Pyongyang is a failure on Obama's part. Just like his father in 2009, Kim Jong Un gave Obama a start-of-term gift in the form of a nuclear test.

Recently, there have been stories about modernization in North Korea. All it took was for the North Korean first lady to wear one Christian Dior dress and the commentators were already talking about a "North Korean Spring." This was somewhat similar to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's first few months as president in Damascus in 2000. But in reality, there is nothing new in North Korea. The nuclear issue was and remains the North Koreans' trump card, or insurance policy, if you will.

There is no country more interested in the North Korean nuclear issue than Iran. Iran has fruitful cooperation with Pyongyang on missile technology, as well as, apparently, on nuclear development. Intelligence sources reported that Iranian engineers were present at North Korea's nuclear test in 2009. North Korea's behavior is a lesson for Iran, which later this month will continue its well-practiced evasive tactics in meetings with the IAEA and world powers.

The Iranian regime also wants a trump card and an insurance policy in the form of a nuclear weapon. In light of North Korea's antics, the world again won't be able to say "we didn't know."

But you can't always complain about the Iranians. On Tuesday, Iran provided an amusing moment on a concerning day when it condemned North Korea's nuclear test.

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