To protest the United Nation Security Council's condemnation of its missile, er...satellite launch, North Korea has withdrawn from six-party talks over the nation's use of nuclear power. Pyongyang has also vowed to start up the nuclear weapons program, er...power plant, it was supposed to be dismantling. We turn now to the BBC's Jonathan Marcus for an overview of of North Korea's actions and the international response.

For more of The Takeaway's coverage of North Korea, click here.

In Bangkok, anti-government protests have turned violent. Supporters of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra are calling for the removal of the current ruler, Abhisit Vejjajiva, who took office four months ago. Thai soldiers dispensed tear gas and fired shots at the protesters, who responded with throwing gasoline bombs. Around 70 people are injured, but there are no reported deaths. For more we turn to Seth Mydans, the Southeast Asia correspondent for the New York Times.

For footage of the violent protests, watch the video below.

President Obama plans to announce an expansive new plan for Afghanistan in a speech at the White House this morning, committing thousands more troops and starting what's being called a "civilian surge." He told Congressional leaders that he'll set the first benchmarks for progress in fighting al Qaida and the Taliban. Obama's plan also reportedly intends to "recast" the Afghan war as more of a regional issue, involving Pakistan, India, China, Russia, and the United Arab Emirates. Thom Shanker, Pentagon correspondent for the New York Times, and Mark Mazzetti, defense correspondent for the New York Times, join The Takeaway for more on what's next in the region.

For more, read Thom Shanker's article, In New Afghan Strategy, Obama Will Add Troops in today's New York Times.

Tiny, affordable cars may seem like a great idea for the environment and the pocketbook. But our guest Linda Blake says putting thousands of Tata Nanos on India's roads is actually a bad idea for India's developing and smog-choked cities. She joins us now to explain.

TIMELINE: CARS FOR THE PEOPLE

Ford Model T
1909
Considered the first affordable car in America, Henry Ford's Model T sold for $850, undercutting competition priced between $2,000 and $3,000. "It will be low in price that no man making a good salary will be unable to own one, and enjoy with his family the blessing of hours of pleasure in God's great open spaces," Ford said.

AMC Rambler
1958
The Rambler's manufacturer, American Motor Corporation, was the only auto company to turn a profit during the recession of 1958. Created cheaply by conserving on steel, it became a car of choice and eventually won a Motor Trends "Car of the Year" award in 1963.

Toyota Tiara
1964
The 1960's forced American car manufacturers to face competition from abroad. Toyota's Tiara was the first of many successful Japanese imports. In 1967, the Tiara sold for $1,670, cheaper than the average American car.

Volkswagen Beetle
1960's
The Volkswagen Beetle, another car in the new wave of imports, sold at around the same price as the Tiara, $1,675. But by 1973, Beetles were selling much better than the Tiara, surpassing sales records of the previous record holder, the Ford Model T.

Zastava Yugo
1985
Just 141,500 of Zastava's Yugos sold in the United States from 1985 to 1991, making it one of the worst-selling cars ever. However, priced at $4,000 when it was first introduced, it was the cheapest car available at the time. In 1991, due to United Nations sanctions on Yugoslavia, the car had to be pulled from the U.S. market. An updated version of the car is still sells in several countries, including Egypt and Poland.

Chevrolet Aveo
2009
Priced at $11,965, the Aveo is currently the cheapest small car produced by a U.S. automaker. "Well, the Aveo is cheap, but, well, it's cheap," read a recent review of affordable small cars in U.S. News & World Report.

Tata Nano
2009
The Nano, produced by India's Tata Motors, is small. It's 10 feet long and five feet wide, and runs at a top speed of about 60 mph. In India, one can purchase the basic model, without radio, air conditioning or air bags, for $2,500 — It meets Indian safety standards and gets an admirable 50 miles to the gallon.

It's the day after World Water Day, a day highlighting the issues facing countries with scarce water resources. The issue of clean water is clearly important, but Rose George, author of The Big Necessity, The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters, suggests we also need a World Sanitation Day.

For more on the importance of clean water and sanitation, watch the video from the International Federation Global Water and Sanitation Initiative (GWSI) in action at the Zambia Red Cross Society:

Every Monday morning The Takeaway takes a look at the nation's agenda —what will drive the headlines for the week ahead? This week: The government tries to figure out how to deal with toxic assets and toxic AIG, the Democrats wrangle over the new budget, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton goes to Mexico to talk about trade, and Americans and Indians see a new, cheaper car in their futures. For their predictions, The Takeaway is joined by Marcus Mabry, the international business editor for the New York Times and Jay Newton-Small, Washington correspondent for Time.

Is President Obama planning an expansion of operations in Pakistan? He very well might be. An article in today's New York Times reveals that President Obama and his national security advisers are considering expanding the American covert war in Pakistan far beyond the tribal regions on the border. The Takeaway talks to The New York Times' terrorism correspondent Eric Schmitt about this news.

For more, read Eric Schmitt's and David Sanger's article, U.S. Weighs Taliban Strike Into Pakistan, in today's New York Times.

The Pakistani government agreed early this morning to reinstate the former chief justice of the Supreme Court. Many see it as a major concession to opposition leader Nawaz Sharif, who was threatening to stage a mass protest after he broke free from alleged house arrest at his residence. Joining The Takeaway with analysis on what's next for Pakistan is Ahmed Rashid, a Pakistani journalist and author of Decent into Chaos: The U.S. and the Disaster in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Central Asia.

Today is the fiftieth anniversary of the Tibetan uprising that forced the Dalai Lama into exile. Last year’s anniversary was marked by riots and protests, but this year, the Chinese government cracked down on any potential political unrest. The Takeaway talks to Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times about the future of Tibet and what the role the U.S. can play in resolving the conflict between China and Tibet.

The Association of South East Asian Nations, known as ASEAN, is usually thought to be more of a figurehead organization that rarely takes real action. That might be changing though as the group of ten countries is working together in the face of the global economic slowdown. Finance ministers have been very proactive and have already agreed to establish a $120 billion currency stabilization fund, which will take on a role similar to that of the IMF. For more we are joined by the BBC's Jonathan Head in Bangkok, Thailand.

Today is the Tibetan New Year, but the Dalai Lama has put celebrations on hold. He's called instead for a commemoration of those killed in a crackdown on demonstrators on this holiday last year. The ongoing conflict with China over autonomy for Tibet is complicating the question of who will succeed the Dalai Lama, who is 74, with the Chinese government insisting that it has the right to designate his next reincarnation. Robert Thurman, a professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist studies at Columbia University and author of Why the Dalai Lama Matters joins John and Jerome with a look at how this transition is likely to unfold.

Yesterday, President Obama welcomed Japanese prime minister Taro Aso to the White House. This meeting came hot on the heels of Secretary of State Clinton making Japan the first stop on her first official trip overseas. While Japan has been a close ally of the United States for decades, why is the Obama administration stressing the relationship now? Bill Emmott, former editor of The Economist and chronicler of post-war Japan, joins us to help answer that question.

On Friday, Hillary Clinton arrives in Beijing for talks with China’s leaders. This is the first visit to China by a senior member of the Obama administration. Everything from the economy, climate change, trade and human rights is on the table. To talk us through the issues facing China-U.S. relations, we’re joined by Cheng Li who is research director and senior fellow at the China Centre at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. For the view from China, we turn to the BBC's Quentin Somerville in Beijing.

As she continues her inaugural trip across Asia, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be in Indonesia today. As the Obama administration makes a push to strengthen relations with Southeast Asia, what will the Secretary of State be hearing from her Indonesian hosts? To answer that question we turn to Iwan Aziz, professor of economics and regional science at Cornell Business School.

In her first overseas trip as Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton said she would be looking to Asia to help tackle global problems. She started her trip in Japan, which is facing down an economic crisis, from there she heads out on a tour of Southeast Asia, where she is likely to face stiff questions over the foreign policy of the last eight years. The BBC's State Department Correspondent, Kim Ghattas, is traveling with Ms. Clinton and she joins us now from Tokyo.

Japan announced today that it is now in the midst of its worst economic downturn since World War II. Since the economies of Asia and the United States are tightly intertwined, it makes perfect sense that Hillary Clinton started her first trip as Secretary of State there. Jonathan Marcus, the diplomatic correspondent for the BBC, joins us now with details.

Pakistan says it has in custody a ringleader and five suspects in November's terrorist attack in Mumbai. But while India says it welcomes Pakistan's latest response, it says Pakistan needs to take more steps to crack down on terror groups existing in that country. For more on the response from India we turn to Sanjoy Majumder, BBC correspondent in Delhi.

India's Junior Foreign Minister Anand Sharma says Pakistan must enforce international law.

President Obama has no shortage of challenges before him on the home front. But overseas, no problem looms larger than that of Afghanistan, where Taliban militants continue to gain ground and popular support. U.S. envoy Richard Holbrooke is in Kabul on what has been called a fact-finding mission. And the Obama administration is expected to announce a troop surge soon. For in depth look at the situation in Afghanistan, The Takeaway is joined by Parag Khanna, a Senior Research Fellow at the New America Foundation and author of The Second World. The BBC's Martin Patience remains to provide his insight.