Trump’s slim North Korea options: Diplomacy, sanctions, force

US President-elect Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

Donald Trump says he is confident North Korea won’t develop a nuclear-tipped missile that could strike the United States. But his options for stopping the reclusive communist country are slim: diplomacy that would reward Pyongyang, sanctions that haven’t worked, and military action that no one wants.

For more than two decades, Republican and Democratic administrations have tried carrots and sticks to steer North Korea away from nuclear weapons. Each has failed. And as Trump prepares to take office Jan. 20, the stakes are rising.

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On Sunday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said preparations for launching an intercontinental ballistic missile “reached the final stage.”

Trump tweeted Monday: “It won’t happen!”

But some experts believe the North will have the capability to strike the U.S. mainland before Trump’s term is up.