McMaster says potential for war with North Korea is 'increasing every day'

National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said Saturday the risk of war between the United States and North Korea is "increasing every day," arguing Pyongyang is "the greatest immediate threat to the United States" and "we are in a race to be able to solve this problem." He did concede there are "ways to address this problem short of armed conflict," but said there is "not much time left" for those options because of North Korea's technological progress.
In an interview with Chris Wallace on Fox News Sunday, McMaster similarly argued preventive war — for the U.S. to attack North Korea to prevent the materialization of a possible future threat — may be the only option to stop "this murderous, rogue regime" from conquering South Korea and starting an Asian nuclear arms race. He brushed aside Wallace's point that the U.S. learned to coexist with a nuclear Soviet Union for decades during the Cold War, suggesting that to repeat that strategy would be too risky for U.S. security.
Watch McMaster's full Fox interview below, and read The Week's Harry J. Kazianis on the deadly consequences of McMaster's proposal. Bonnie Kristian
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
Today's political cartoons - March 8, 2025
Cartoons Saturday's cartoons - trade wars, healthcare costs, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Marbled tea eggs recipe
The Week Recommends With a beautiful exterior, these eggs are also marked by their soft yolk
By The Week UK Published
-
The Washington Post: kowtowing to Trump?
Talking Point The newspaper's opinion editor has handed in his notice following edict from Jeff Bezos
By The Week UK Published
-
Nobody seems surprised Wagner's Prigozhin died under suspicious circumstances
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Western mountain climbers allegedly left Pakistani porter to die on K2
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Circular saw blades' divide controversial Rio Grande buoys installed by Texas governor
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
Los Angeles city workers stage 1-day walkout over labor conditions
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Mega Millions jackpot climbs to an estimated $1.55 billion
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Bangladesh dealing with worst dengue fever outbreak on record
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Glacial outburst flooding in Juneau destroys homes
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Scotland seeking 'monster hunters' to search for fabled Loch Ness creature
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published