North Korea’s nuclear threat cannot be extinguished with a simple pre-emptive strike, the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) has warned.
Instead, a strike would merely lead to a drawn-out, horrifying battle between Kim Jong-un’s hermit state and his Western rivals.
Hundreds of thousands of people would die across East Asia following a pre-emptive strike – something US president Donald Trump said he would consider if provoked.
Earlier this month the former TV host said he would “totally destroy” North Korea, a threat Rusi is now warning would not be easy to carry out.
The UK-based think tank said: “If this war is launched, it will not be surgical or short.
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“There is no easy military option that can destroy North Korea nuclear capabilities without starting a wider war.”
The report hinted Mr Trump was ignoring more senior military advisors, who were desperately urging diplomacy over sabre-rattling.
READ MORE: Will the USA attack North Korea?
Rusi said their message now is: “If you decide to go ahead with this, do not say we did not warn you.”
The report chillingly warned time was running out if Mr Trump wishes to carry out a pre-emptive strike as North Korea rushes towards nuclear power status.
The rogue state has already created mini-nuclear warheads and are only “two or three years – and perhaps much less” from responding to any attack with “nuclear retaliation”.
Rusi said this means Mr Trump could be considering an attack in the near future while North Korea is still relatively underprepared.
They said: “War is now a real possibility. With North Korea making rapid progress in its missile and nuclear programmes, time is not on diplomacy’s side.
“Given this stark choice, there is a real possibility Trump will decide to resolve the North Korea issue sooner rather than later.”
What cannot be avoided, Rusi warned, is a death count in the hundreds of thousands. If attacked, North Korea will respond by hurling missiles at South Korea and US military bases.
READ MORE: Does North Korea have nuclear weapons?
Russia said: “Casualties in such a conflict would likely reach the hundreds of thousands even if no nuclear weapons were used.”
The report comes after North Korea accused the US of declaring war after Mr Trump tweeted the crackpot dictator Kim “won’t be around much longer”.
The White House dismissed the claim but Mr Trump has insisted that if the US was forced to defend itself against the rogue state “we will have no choice but to totally destroy” the country.