If you don't believe me.. go take a look a Syria, Irak, Lybia, soon Venezuela.
Nrk is spending massive amounts on military but probably is losing to South Korea. Nuclear weapons offers nrk a way out of being outspent.
The west accepted Pakistan as a nuclear power; my guess is that we will accept nrk as well.
Single out the US isn't helpful for the discussion. Do you think Russia, China, EU have all just stayed away from all of the conflicts? How about Iran, Israel, Saudi Arabia, even Turkey?
Ask South East Asia countries what they think of China; or ex-USSR states of Russia; or Sri Lanka of India.
North Korea has the support of China and holds South Korea ransom. They don't need nuclear weapon for self defense.