North Korea is going all out with threats – why? What can be done? Here are some of my thoughts in the New York Times ‘Room for Debate’ opinion page in a discussion with other esteemed colleagues. Click here or see below:

New York Times Room for Debate

March 11, 2013

Nuclear Neighbors for North Korea?

North Korea declared the 1953 Korean War armistice nullified on Monday, in the wake of growing threats from the country’s leader Kim Jong-un directed last week at South Korea and the United States and the United Nations Security Council decision to in retaliation to its third nuclear test in February.

A new sense of vulnerability is leading some South Koreans to call for the development of its own nuclear weapons program. Its neighbor Japan could easily build up a nuclear arsenal. Will North Korea’s threats and continued testing cause more proliferation in the region?

For South Korea, It’s Unrealistic

By Duyeon Kim

South Korea’s development of nuclear weapons is not realistic, despite the demands made by a few conservative politicians whenever North Korea acts up. It would be a clear violation of international law that would sever political and economic relations with its closest ally, the U.S., and neighboring countries. South Korean nuclear armament risks turning back the clock to the disastrous economic situation during the Korean War and crippling the world’s 12th-largest economy, which relies so extensively on international trade. No more smartphones, no more fashion, no more musical sensations like Psy. Moreover, Seoul does not possess the technical capability to go nuclear.

Seoul hasn’t seriously considered nuclear weapons since the 1970s Park Chung-hee military rule. But that was ignited by fears of abandonment when President Jimmy Carter suddenly decided to withdraw U.S. troops from the peninsula.

Instead, there are more urgent, realistic questions that need to be addressed.

First, how to prevent possible conflict amid spiked tensions on the peninsula as North Korea has threatened nuclear war and declared the Korean War Armistice Agreement nullified, coincident with a new round of joint U.S.-South Korea military drills. North Korean unpredictability looms as South Korea braces for unexpected provocations. Let’s hope there are no miscalculations over the next couple of weeks that lead to unintended consequences.

Second, how to nip a bud that doesn’t want to be nipped. It is clear Pyongyang will not surrender its nuclear ambitions, including recognition as a nuclear power. Kim Jong-un’s regime is creating an extremely volatile situation apparently aimed at forcing Washington into peace treaty talks that would withdraw U.S. troops from the Korean Peninsula while keeping their nukes.

Inaction is worse than any not-good option. Diplomatic talks will need to resume at some point after the noise settles. But does President Obama have a clear North Korea policy, or even an interest?