Young Mr. Kim will not follow orders. How Beijing got used to Pyongyang’s provocations.

This weekend, North Koreans were alerted to the news that their country had completed another technological triumph: the launch of a satellite. "The fascinating vapor of Juche [self-reliance] satellite trailing in the clear and blue sky in spring of February" was how North Korean TV described the launch. But the official response from Beijing, North Korea's only ally, was muted.