North Korea's latest missile test could have been sabotaged by a US cyber attack, a former British Foreign Secretary said today.
Sir Malcolm Rifkind, who received secret briefings as chairman of Parliament's Intelligence and Security Committee between 2010 and 2015, said he did not know but the prospect should not be ruled out.
South Korea and the US military said overnight that North Korea had tried to launch an "unidentified missile" but the test appeared to have failed.
It "fizzled out after five seconds" according to a US official travelling with Vice President Mike Pence, who has arrived in South Korea while an "armada" of US ships approaches in a show of force.
Sir Malcolm told the BBC: "It could have failed because the system is not competent enough to make it work.
"But there is a very strong belief that the US through cyber methods has been successful on several occasions in interrupting these sorts of tests and making them fail.
"So if the Americans are able to do that that's probably very encouraging."
Pressed further, he said: "I don't know is the honest answer, but there have certainly been reports that they have the competence of doing that.
"There have been previous examples when the Americans have used cyber methods, for example with Iran some years ago, they interrupted some of their nuclear enrichment programmes.
"There have also been quite a number of occasions when North Korean tests have failed.
"But don't get too excited by that, they've also had quite a lot of successful tests.
"They are an advanced country when it comes to their nuclear weapons programme. That still remains a fact - a hard fact."
The apparent failed test came hours after North Korea showed off what appeared to be new missiles in a huge military parade on the anniversary of the Communist state's founder.
The Foreign Office has said it is "concerned by reports of a missile test by North Korea'' and is "monitoring the situation closely''.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson added: "We have been here before but continue to monitor the situation carefully.
"We stand alongside our international partners in making clear that North Korea must adhere to UN resolutions designed to secure peace and stability in the region and stop its pursuit of nuclear weapons."
America's vice president, Mike Pence, is arriving in South Korea today to visit US troops.
An anonymous adviser travelling with him told Reuters: "We had good intelligence before the launch and good intelligence after the launch.
"It's a failed test. It follows another failed test. So really no need to reinforce their failure. We don't need to expend any resources against that."
The U.S. Pacific Command said the missile "blew up almost immediately", adding the type of missile was being analysed.
South Korea's Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement: "The North attempted to launch an unidentified missile from near the Sinpo region this morning but it is suspected to have failed."
China, North Korea's only major ally, has called for calm, warning "conflict could break out at any moment" and that such a situation would bring no winners.
But a source told Britain's Sunday Times Donald Trump is ready to hit North Korea's nuclear sites and could even launch a pre-emptive strike.
"They'll do anything it takes," the British source said.
Choe Ryong Hae, widely regarded as North Korea's number two leading official, accused Mr Trump of "creating a war situation" on the Korean Peninsula by sending American forces to the region.
He said: "We will respond to an all-out war with an all-out war and a nuclear war with our style of a nuclear attack."