Denuclearization Is Dead, Now Let’s Bury It
Make no mistake: after more than two decades of tedious maneuvering that have led many of our best experts to surrender to a false sense of eternal recurrence and essential stability, the nuclear crisis on the Korean peninsula is now hurtling towards an actual showdown. A year or two from now, the DPRK will be either an established (if not formally accepted) nuclear power with a small but largely undisputed intercontinental capability, an active conflict zone, or conceivably – and with no unnecessary drama intended – an irradiated wasteland, the likes of which the world has never seen before.
In its quest for the ultimate guarantee of regime survival, the DPRK government has on balance proven itself more determined, more tenacious, and far more resourceful than the United States and its allies. It now stands ready to claim its prize – the ability to deter the United States not just by proxy, but by holding hostage a substantial portion of the American populace itself.
