The reason the US and NATO have stopped ‘boots on the ground’ invasions is that they learned the hard way in places like Afghanistan and Iraq that you don’t just conquer and subdue by armed force and then try to westernise countries. Look back over the post war era; Vietnam and Korea and more recently Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria . . . all the billions spent, the lives lost and the invasions and bombings haven’t altered anything. What would NK fight with? This. http://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-asi...in-huge-parade That doesn’t mean they’d win, they certainly wouldn’t militarily, but this is a whole lot different from fighting Al-Queda in Afghanistan caves and a rag tag Iraq army. China doesn’t want, but is quite prepared for war and has already said so on numerous occasions if the US or NATO try to use armed force in their back yard – ditto Russia. Do they have a point? http://www.globalresearch.ca/russia-...-osten/5591044 In particular, look at the 2nd image down – ‘U.S. Bases near Russia’. That’s not defence and that’s why everyone is getting upset. I think that the west has to acknowledge that others too have ‘backyards’ and gone are the days of taking on a rag tag bunch armed with old AK47’s and losing at that. NK is one thing, but if that drags Russia and China in, both the US and NATO might live to regret it and they know it. It’s why NATO didn’t invade the Ukraine and despite all the bluster, the US didn’t do anything to stop China’s expansion in the South Sea Islands. NK is a failed state propped up by China and will back down if China says so. Taking out the nuclear facilities is one thing, but invasion is definitely one scenario that could lead to WW3.