North Korea vs. the world.

• Author: Zissou, Rebecca
• Position: INTERNATIONAL

This brutal, isolated Communist nation continues to test nuclear weapons and threaten its enemies, including the U.S. Can North Korea be stopped before it's too late?

Fifteen-year-old Joseph Kim was living on the streets of Hoeryong, North Korea, alone and afraid. His father had died of starvation years earlier, and his mother and sister had disappeared without a trace. Instead of going to school, the teen spent his days searching for food or working odd jobs,

Fearing that he wouldn't be able to survive for much longer in North Korea, Joseph decided to try to flee the country. He knew that if he were caught attempting to leave without the government's permission, he could be arrested and even put to death.

"I knew the journey would be risky, but I would be risking my life either way," Joseph said later. "I could die of starvation like my father in North Korea, or at least I could try for a better life by escaping to China."

So in the middle of winter, Joseph left his hometown with little more than the clothes on his back. Careful to avoid armed border guards, he ran across the frozen Turnen River into China. Within months, he connected with an international aid group called Liberty in North Korea that helped him move to the U.S. as a refugee. Today, 10 years later, Joseph is a college student in New York (see "Escape From North Korea, " p. 17).

In recent years, tens of thousands of people like Joseph have managed to escape from North Korea. The nation is one of the most brutal and isolated places on Earth. Its 25 million citizens are cut off from the outside world and have few rights or freedoms.

The country's young ruler, Kim Jong Un, has been extremely aggressive and unpredictable, threatening North Korea's enemies, including the U.S. and South Korea. Last September, he defied the world by testing a nuclear bomb. Then in a speech on January 1, Kim said his country was preparing to conduct its first test of a long-range missile, which could reach the U.S. (The following day, weeks before he was inaugurated, Donald Trump dismissed that claim, tweeting, "It won't happen!" His spokesperson later said the remark was meant as a warning.)

Testing Nukes

National security experts say the acceleration of North Korea's nuclear program is a serious threat to the U.S. and its allies in Asia, particularly South Korea and Japan. A single nuclear bomb could wipe out an entire city and kill millions of people. Nine countries possess nuclear weapons--including the U.S. But North Korea is the only one to have tested them in the 21st century.

To prevent North Korea from perfecting a nuclear weapon, the U.S. and the United Nations (U.N.) have had a series of sanctions in place for years. Those penalties aim to restrict international trade and make it harder for the North to fund nuclear research. Sanctions have also made daily life harder for ordinary North Koreans, but so far, the measures haven't been effective in persuading Kim to return to the negotiating table.

Beatrice Film of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons says the world needs to act now to prevent Kim from expanding his nuclear program.

North Korea's latest test "should be an urgent wake-up call" for the world, Film says.

North Korea's troubled history with the U.S.--and its neighbors--goes back to the end of World War II (see timeline, p. 18). In 1945, the Korean Peninsula, which had been occupied by Japan since 1910, was divided into two zones.

In 1945, the Soviet Union occupied the northern zone and installed a Communist regime, led by Kim II Sung (Kim Jong Un's grandfather). Meanwhile, South Korea--the zone that had been controlled by U.S. and Allied forces--became a democracy and an important U.S. ally.

The 38th Parallel

In June 1950, North Korean forces invaded the South, starting the Korean War. An international coalition led by the U.S. came to the South's defense. Three years later, an armistice ended the conflict. By that time, about 3 million people had been killed, including 34,000 U.S. soldiers. The agreement established a 2.5-mile-wide demilitarized zone (or DMZ) separating North and South Korea at the 38th parallel (see map, p. 14). The armistice was...