Over the last seventy years, North Korea has continued to expand their nuclear knowledge and weaponry. Today, North Korea is believed to have around one-thousand ballistic missiles. Some of which can potentially reach a very large portion of the United States, including the east coast, west coast, and everything in between. The only part of the U.S. North Korea is unable to target is a small portion of southern Florida. However, most of these missiles are much shorter ranged weapons, only capable of reaching targets in South Korea.

However, even if North Korea is incapable of reaching the continental United States, all out war with North Korea could put Seoul and Japan in the firing line, disrupting trade in the pacific. Further, technology increases at an exponential rate, as per Moore’s law, and their missile technology will only become a greater threat.

Even if North Korea can’t hit the United States war could disrupt trade across the Pacific, damaging the economy of Oregon and the all U.S. Some even say that Trump is making this situation worse.

In today’s times, it seems almost as if we’re about to spark another Cold War. In theory, nuclear deterrence is meant to stop foreign threats from attacking, but in North Korea’s case, it’s just incentivising them to continue expanding their arsenal of nuclear weapons. This is an endless cycle, which isn’t easily stopped. However, the longer we wait, the more prevalent the threat of war becomes.

De-escalation is no simple matter, as in the modern interconnected world, a tweet on one side of the world can affect military policy on another. Today, the role of the media is greater than it has ever been, especially North Korean media, or lack thereof. According to an interview North Korean defector, Yeonmi Park, had with The Independent, “I had to be careful of my thoughts because I believed Kim Jong-il could read my mind.”

This is a very complicated situation indeed. However, does the average person even know the entirety of what’s going on? In an interview with Clackamas High School Freshman, William Stogsdill, that question was answered. He believed that North Korea holds grudges against the United States because, “America holds a lot of power in the world and North Korea doesn’t. Plus America boasts about a lot of stuff, and of course Trump.” This assertion isn’t necessarily false, but it is an extreme simplification of the matter. Stogsdill also says that he sees the media cover North Korea “Quite a bit, but mainly from failed missile attempts or if Trump says something about them.” Trusting that Stogsdill is telling the truth, it’s not a stretch that despite the media’s extensive coverage of the matter, they’re not properly informing the people on the main things that drive this conflict.

The situation definitely doesn’t seem to be getting better anytime soon. Whether that be because of the media, our president, or North Korean indoctrination. All people can hope for is for powerful leaders across the world to come to their senses and make decisions to help solve this crisis.