Are we on the cusp of change in Korea? It is a question that makes us reach for our helmets in this part of the world. For decades, the pattern has been remarkably consistent: crises, talks and tensions, all managed so superbly under the American umbrella that North Korea has been held in check and South Korea has become a major industrial power. Two developments this week suggest that the tectonic plates under the peninsula might shift. The first came on Saturday, when President Lee Jae Myung used his Liberation Day speech to call for talks with North Korea aimed at formally ending the Korean War and replacing the 1953 armistice with a permanent peace agreement. The second is coming from Washington. Reports say President Donald Trump is pushing his aides to arrange a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un as early as this autumn. Trump has already ordered a substantial reduction in US-South Korean military exercises, saying he wants to revive his relationship with Kim. We should not over-analyze, but it is worth being on alert for how Kim might respond to both initiatives — and how