South Korea, US Running Low on Options amid North's Growing Threat
North Korea celebrated the 10th anniversary of its first nuclear bomb test on Sunday.
Repeated international efforts to stop Pyongyang's nuclear program have failed, and now it seems all that South Korea and its U.S. ally have left is deterrence, including a preemptive strike or the threat of nuclear retaliation.
"We have clarified several times that if North Korea shows imminent signs of using nuclear weapons, we can launch a self-defensive preemptive nuclear strike," South Korea Defense Ministry spokesman Moon Sang Gyun warned.
American U.N. envoy Samantha Power was in South Korea for the anniversary and said the United States would use every tool it had, including the military, to deter North Korea.
Meanwhile, satellite surveillance of North Korea indicates it is preparing for another nuclear test.
It's clear not only that U.S. efforts to stop North Korea's nuclear program have failed, but that the communist nation intends to become a major nuclear threat.
A new report from the Rand Corporation says, coupled with it's missile program, North Korea could have up to 100 "deliverable" nuclear weapons within just four years.
