North Korea tested its first nuclear weapon last week. Within days, the startled world came together to devise a plan to take the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s weapons out of commission and ensure world safety once again — at least safe from a DPRK nuclear attack. So what do we always do when death and danger breathe down our backs? We turn to our trusted United Nations to resolve issues. But is the UN able to solve this problem?

Over the weekend, The UN issued official financial and weapons sanctions against North Korea. The main goal of the sanctions is to prevent materials used for weapons of mass destruction from entering the country. According to a report from CNN.com, China refused to conduct searches of shipments to North Korea. Despite this, U.S. officials believe China will inspect cargo.

According to the United Nations Web site, www.un.org, Resolution 1718 passed on a 15-0 vote and forbids any trade between nations in the UN and North Korea. Not surprisingly, the DPRK rejected the resolution and responded by placing the blame on the U.S., claiming America “provoked” their actions. From this, it is clear that Kim Jong-il is playing games and pointing fingers when he has no one to blame but himself.

Over the years, the UN has had a positive impact on our world. According to a report by the RAND Corporation, the UN’s nation-building efforts have resulted in seven out of eight cases being at peace. Also, the Human Security Report of 2005 concluded there has been a drop in violent conflict, deadly conflicts and genocide and democide.

While these reports seem promising, we must not forget the shortcomings of the UN. Consider the UN’s past failures in world affairs. Where was the UN when the 1994 Rwandan genocide took place? What about the Srebrenica massacre or the starvation of Somalia?

The movie “Hotel Rwanda” offers a stark and sobering look at tragedy. It would seem that when a crisis occurs, military action has been one of the UN’s weaker points. Simply put, the UN has big words, but when it comes to muscles, what can it do? In some cases, the UN not only is doing nothing about a crisis, but actively participating in it. The United Nations Organization Mission in Congo, a force of 11,000 strong, like all UN peacekeepers, explicitly forbids its members from soliciting prostitutes. But according to a column in the Washington Post, columnist Kofi Annan said, with respect to the peacekeeper situation in Congo, that there is clear evidence that acts of gross misconduct have taken place.

An internal effort has been made to discourage this behavior, with the investigators reporting anonymous death threats as the result. Often, with such a large and diverse set of countries, an agreement of action cannot be reached, even when absolutely necessary. For the time being, we are resorting to diplomatic pressure on North Korea to resolve the nuclear threat.

As follows, the ball is in Kim Jong-il’s hands, but it might as well be flat. Kim Jong-il is hardly the type to play by the rules or listen to the referees, or, in this case, the rest of the world. His regime’s numerous human rights violations show his lack of care for his people or anyone else. In a demonstration of their lack of reality and unwillingness to cooperate, the DPRK’s representative in the UN Security Council, Pak Gil Yon, walked out after calling the council “gangster-like.” If the UN sanctions fail to move North Korea, force may be the final option.