deal with aggressive Soviet actions, the U.S. could opt out of a nuclear strike and take less damaging actions to rectify the problem without losing face in the international community. Another reason for this was the development of a Soviet second strike capability, in the form of silo-based ICBMs and later SLBMs. Retaliation plan for North Korean nuclear threat In 2015, the United States and South Korea came to a new agreement regarding the handling of North Korean nuclear threats. The agreement gave South Korea both options to prevent a missile strike, and the ability to strike back quickly with force. The strategy is known as Massive Punishment and Retaliation, and in this, a quick retaliatory strike would be carried out on North Korean officials. This Korean Massive Punishment and Retaliation plan brought back the deterrence strategy previously used. The United States-South Korea partnership understands the implications of a preemptive strike, and put efforts into defense and response. The United States placed a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in South Korea to protect the country from missile strikes from the North. This defense system is capable of intercepting ballistic missiles of all ranges. The missile defense system coupled with the plan of a massive retaliatory strike has given South Korea a better sense of security against the North. The threat of a massive retaliation from the South was a deterrent for the North. Following the installation of the THAAD in South Korea and the election of President Donald Trump in 2016, the policy of massive retaliation was growing. In 2017, North Korean missile tests and threats from Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un further increased tensions. Following a North Korean threat of an attack on the United States military base in Guam, it prompted a response from President Trump in which he stated:“They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. He has been very threatening ... and as I said they will be met with fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which this world has never seen before.” - Donald J. Trump. August, 2018. This threat of massive retaliation, and the president's stated policy of applying “maximum pressure” on the North Koreans was soon followed by a summit between the two leaders. The focus of this summit was the end goal of ending the testing of nuclear weapons in North Korea. With the