North Korea wants a nuclear arsenal as soon as possible and the Asian country is making a huge effort to get it. They have repeatedly said they will not hesitate to use nuclear weapons. Recently, Donald Trump praised the North Korean Leader, Kim Jong-un when he reversed his decision to send missiles into Guam territorial waters. This came after the Chinese president spoke to Trump on the phone about North Korea and also warned North Korea that they would not come to their aid if they called the first strike. The Pyongyang regime has long been backed the by nuclear power country of China who is the main ally of the North Korean government.
The U.S. has to find a path to nullify the nuclear threat from a mutually assured destruction regime, (MAD), as it did with the Soviet Union. It was through this that the giants of the Cold War understood that they were going to destroy each other, and there could be no winners
The lesson of Moammar Gadhafi
The Libyan ruler was close to developing a nuclear weapon a few decades ago. After the invasion of Iraq by the United States, the Libyan dictator understood what might happen to him if he kept developing nuclear weapons. He decided to cancel his nuclear program by sending abroad many tons of equipment and documentation. Kim Jong-un has paid close attention to the events that happened in Libya, the North Korean leader doesn't want to make the mistakes that Gadhafi did.
About MAD policy
One principle of this policy is that no country can attack the other one, thus, the American President shouldn't antagonize more with the North Korean leader. The Communist dictator has scarce self-control, Kim killed his uncle and his half-brother for minor offenses. This is the moment to be more diplomatic with the North Korean ruler.
Japan and South Korea want to develop their own nuclear arsenals, Japan wants to have offensive military capabilities and South Korea wants to build more powerful missiles. Controlling Kim is key to stop the proliferation of nuclear arsenals in Asia.
Is a regime change possible?
The US will have to wait many years until there is a real regime change in North Korea that stops developing nuclear weapons.
A good strategy would be to show Kim some respect, as we did with the Libyan leader until he was deposed. Anyway, we don't have to cancel our military maneuvers because it could be seen as a sign of weakness, but reducing their duration could calm down Kim a lot.
