Options Limited for Response to a Nuclear Test by North Korea

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http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBZV6E929E.html

WASHINGTON (AP) - A nuclear weapons test by North Korea would reverberate around the world, altering the nuclear balance in Asia and posing stark new challenges for U.S. policy-makers and military planners.

Yet, it could also induce China, Russia and other powers to join the United States in seeking U.N.-approved penalties against the hard-line communist country, analysts and diplomats suggest.

With U.S. officials increasingly concerned that North Korea may conduct a test soon, how would Washington respond?

First, the Bush administration probably would try to involve the United Nations. Less clear is whether President Bush would consider a risky military strike - given North Korean leader Kim Jong Il's million-man army, heavy conventional weaponry and perhaps several nuclear weapons.