North Korea's nuclear test with an advanced hydrogen bomb, which triggered a magnitude 6.3 earthquake in the Korean Peninsula, was the latest move by the dictator Kim Jong Un aimed at provoking the West. Kim, the cruel "supreme leader" that rules North Korea, has been squeezing his way into the power vacuum created as a result of a lack of global leadership, a problem that grew more severe under former U.S. President Barack Obama. During Obama's presidency, the international community was witness to a world without a global sheriff. In the past, it was the United States versus Russia, and there was a sort of equilibrium in the world. The 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis exemplified this balance. The fall of the Communist regime in Russia in 1991 led to a unipolar international system where the U.S. ruled as sheriff. Before Obama's inauguration in 2008, U.S. presidents deterred threats through the use of military action, including the deployment of large military forces, and demonstrated leadership. As soon as Obama implemented a policy of nonglobal military intervention, radical forces around the world, like Iran, the Islamic State group and others, began to use violence and start regional wars, with the knowledge there was little chance the world's sheriff would take action. The U.S. instead decided to focus on the diplomatic front, a move that resulted in bitter disappointment. In the absence of a global authority, several states tried, through the use of knowledge acquired by North Korea, to arm themselves with nuclear weapons. Kim understood that in today's world, anyone can go wild and shoot missiles over Japan, threaten Guam, home to a large U.S. military base, and even the U.S. itself. Obama's desire to keep the U.S. out of global issues, combined with an ineffective U.N. that failed to fulfill its international missions were what led Kim to behave in this way and issue threats. He is under the assumption that no one would be willing to hit a nuclear state where people's lives are of no importance to its leaders. Kim is not the only one to grasp the weakness of the international community. In close proximity to Israel, Iran is attempting to create a multilateral Shiite alliance that stretches from Lebanon and Syria to Iraq. Its leadership understands that international condemnation does not a deterrent make. In North Korea's case, its missiles threaten a democratic and economically flourishing South Korea as well as a demilitarized Japan -- two countries that, should they be attacked, would likely suffer massive casualties. The Korean War ended with the demarcation of the 38th parallel north, the boundary between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea in 1953. In this demilitarized zone, 37,000 personnel, U.S. soldiers and U.N. officials, are deployed. While the South has thrived, the North has focused on nuclear armament, the torture of its citizens and re-education. Mere hours after yesterday's blast, the U.S. and South Korea announced they were now considering military action against Pyongyang. Although similar statements have been made in the past, no such steps were ever taken. U.S. President Donald Trump is capable of hitting North Korea hard, but the hesitation on his part is understandable given the possibility such a move could spell disaster for the Korean Peninsula and Japan. The optimal solution would be for Trump to reign in Kim Jong Un through an international alliance with Russia and China. The U.S. would need to make painful concessions for such a powerful alliance to be able to choke North Korea and make it clear the world has a new leadership. Quelling Kim is slowly becoming a Chinese and Russian matter, and the two strongly condemned North Korea on Sunday. A true alliance, although difficult to initiate, could bring peace to Korea and mark the return of a sane world. Dr. Avi Bitzur is a senior lecturer at the College for Academic Studies in Or Yehuda.