The risk of the DPRK launching an attack against the ROK will always exist when the two sides keep their incendiary rhetoric, said Lee Sung-yoon from Kim Koo Korea Foundation.

However, there has been a “de-facto peace on the Korean Peninsula since the end of the Korean War in 1953, so I think it’s far more likely that self-restraint will be exercised,” he added.

Pyongyang’s growing nuclear and missile program is “no joke,” Lee stated, adding that “we are entering a period of consequences” under the Trump administration.

The DPRK attempted to fire a missile early on Sunday morning but the launch is believed to have been unsuccessful. The test comes a day after Pyongyang held a massive military parade in a show of force to mark the “Day of the Sun,” and hours before US Vice President Mike Pence arrives in Seoul, the first leg of his 10-day Asia trip.