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nproliferation treaty this stated that North Korea was to halt the increase of nuclear weapons. Since then North Korea has been testing missiles and nuclear weapons. In 2006, they conducted an underground nuclear blast, 2012 they tested a missile over the sea but quickly disintegrated. In 2013 the U.N. added sanctions against North Korea, prohibiting the export of some military supplies, luxury goods and imposed sanctions on money transfers and aimed to shut North Korea out of the international financial system. While in 2015 they successfully test an underwater submarine missile and in March 2016 after the fourth nuclear test and then the detonation of a hydrogen bomb, the U.N. further strengthened sanctions. It banned the export of gold, vanadium, titanium, and rare earth metals to hinder their economy. Most recently they tested a missile that experts say have the possibility of reaching New York.

Although relations between the U.S.A and North Korea are stressed right now back when Clinton was president they were working towards normalcy diplomatically. In early 1994 North Korea threated to use nuclear rods and turn them into nuclear weapons, president Clinton had the chance to attack them but instead tried to talk to them. This lead to the agreed framework deal which said, “to freeze and ultimately dismantle its nuclear program in exchange for the full normalization of political and economic relations with the United States”. For agreeing to this they received fuel oil and assistance in construction of the light water reactor. Their main reason for agreeing to this was because of the loss of the Soviet Union, one of their closest allies, and China developing better relations with South Korea. So, they believed having a better relationship with the US would help them. This deal was working until a new president was elected 2001 began the decline of relations between the US and North Korea, the Bush Administration took a hard line against North Korea.  They believed North Korea was not holding up their end of the agreed framework, believing they were enriching uranium, but was never actually proved. The US cut off oil shipments to North Korea which they took harshly kicking all IAEA inspectors out of the country and withdrawing from the nonproliferation treaty. In 2006 the first nuclear bomb was tested it was very weak but the U.N. set very swift sanctions telling them to stop and destroy all nuclear weapons in the works. North Korea stated that the test was because of US sanction and pressure these testing slowly continued until 2009 when it looked like peaceful talks may happen again when suddenly Kim Jong-Ill died. His succesor Kim Jung-Un has increased the pace and rate of nuclear and missile testing drastically with increasingly more dangerous weapons. One of the most recent ones tested was 250 kilotons which can be compared to the one dropped on Hiroshima which was 15 kilotons.

Looking at this situation from the North Korean perspective there are some viable reason for wanting an arsenal of nuclear weapons. These weapons can be used as a deterrence against other countries attacking or invading them. If other countries know they have weapons of mass destruction nobody will want to attack them because of fear of retaliation with these weapons. Along with this North Korea is evening up the playing field there are eight other countries with nuclear weapons, so by North Korea having these wea