US is insufficiently prepared for North Korea to use a tactical nuke against southern neighbors

Published May 13, 2026 3:04pm ET | Updated May 13, 2026 3:12pm ET



The United States is insufficiently prepared to handle a conflict on the Korean peninsula in which Pyongyang deploys a tactical nuclear weapon against the South, according to a new Pentagon-sponsored tabletop exercise.

The department’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency sponsored the Atlantic Council’s Guardian Tiger III tabletop exercise, which sought to assess U.S. and allies’ readiness and the challenges they would face if North Korea were to employ a limited nuclear attack.

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