How to avoid war with North Korea in 2020

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The problem with U.S.-North Korea relations is that we are just not aggressive enough. At least, that’s what former national security adviser John Bolton claimed in a new interview with Axios. “The idea that we are somehow exerting maximum pressure on North Korea is just unfortunately not true,” Bolton said, arguing the Trump administration should “be pursuing a different course.”

And what would that course be? Beyond a proposal to intercept illegal oil transfers, Bolton was vague. The foreign policy hawk didn’t spell out his preferred approach, but it isn’t difficult to guess based on his past statements: Bolton wants President Trump to wage preventive war and wants the United States to attack North Korea. This, of course, is madness. It could lead to nuclear conflict and would undoubtedly lead to the loss of millions of lives.

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