# Defusing the Korean Bomb 

December 16, 1991 • Foreign Policy Briefing No. 14 

By [Doug Bandow](https://www.cato.org/people/doug-bandow) 

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Iraq is not the only aggressive regional power seeking to develop an atomic bomb. North Korea, the secretive Hermit Kingdom ruled by “great leader” Kim Il Sung, has an extensive nuclear research program but so far refuses to allow international inspection of its facilities. The United States needs to work to defuse the North Korean bomb before it is built, lest Pyongyang destabilize the entire East Asian region.

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##### Defusing the Korean Bomb 

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##### [Doug Bandow](/people/doug-bandow)

Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

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