ABSTRACT

Imagine for a moment a nuclear winter, where the landscape is devoid of structures, people or life—a desolate wasteland. Or perhaps a hot war involving some of the world’s most powerful nations, economies and militaries—the United States, People’s Republic of China (PRC), Russian Federation, Japan, South Korea, and North Korea. The Korean peninsula stands as testament to our global past while indicating its possible future. On the one hand, it remains one of the final vestiges of a Cold War long abandoned by other nations, a visible reminder of how the global community of nations divided itself in the aftermath of World War II. On the other hand, it represents the proverbial finger on a trigger ready to be pulled, potentially hurtling the community of nations into global calamity.