Assessing the Legality of North Korea’s Nuclear and Missile Tests in International Law

North Korea's numerous nuclear and missile tests in the past two decades have not only raised concern for regional states, but also the entire international community, with a worrying situation against international peace and security.North Korea conducted its first nuclear test in 2006, and has since successfully completed five other nuclear tests. Moreover, despite many obstacles, Koreans also advanced their missile program which naturally followed the ultimate goal to build missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. Moreover, despite expectations, the SC Resolutions could not stop the progress of North Korea's nuclear and missile programs. North Korean nuclear program is clearly indicating the weaknesses of the IAEA regime and the SC, and in this regard, Pyongyang's actions may well be the beginning of a procedural formation of a Nuclear Non-Proliferation neutralizer. What is to be addressed in the present paper is to verify the legality of North Korea's nuclear and missile tests in accordance with international law. At the same time, the legitimacy of SC Resolutions is also criticized and reviewed in terms of content against the DPRK. Finally, a perspective on how to deal with North Korea and the current nuclear crisis will be discussed in the conclusion.