Lil Kim is likely just blowing hot air, BUT...
1. They have nukes, they have missiles capable of hitting SK, Japan, Guam, and even the U.S.
2. They have stated clearly that they consider themselves at a state of war with us and will be striking us with nuclear weapons imminently.
3. They are padding the missiles.
A sane response would be to hit the missiles on the launch pad now and/or intercept the missile in its launch phase with SM-3s. Totally destroying Pyongyang’s electrical power plants would also be a suitable response to an actual launch.
Of course, massive air strikes (including everything up to tac nukes) on their artillery positions within striking range of Seoul would need to be on standby.
I think Pyongyang is the key to applying pressure, if the time comes to do so. It is what passes for the gem of NK. All of the elites live there. Everything is symbolic. Take away the power, water, food, and fuel; start dropping the symbolic structures. Cut off the roads and rail to the rest of NK. Rain leaflets on the rest of NK.
Start hour 1 with striking every aircraft, ship, and submarine they possess, along with every known ammunition bunker.
I am not so sure they really do have the capability to hit the U.S. North Korea says it has a lot of capabilities that it really doesn’t have.
“Rain leaflets on the rest of NK.”
The leaflets just need to show the picture from space at night showing the lights on each side of the border. And maybe pictures of restaurants in SK and pictures of street fulls healthy looking S Koreans.
Rain leaflets on the rest of NK.
The problem you overlook is “hour 1” is the extent of the war. The minute actual combat begins, 30,000 artillery pieces open fire on 1/4 of SK’s population with 10,000,000 casualties minimum.
But that could be seen as 'cowboy-ish' pre-emption on our part, and unfairly taking advantage of North Korea's weaker military capabilities.
I mean, what would the Europeans or the UN think of us if we did such a thing?