May hints we could hit back with cyber war on tyrant Kim

THERESA May has refused to rule out using cyber warfare to target North Korea dictator Kim Jong-un in the wake of his latest missile launch.

And she pledged to stand ‘shoulder to shoulder’ with Japan whose territory was targeted.

Arriving in the Japanese city of Kyoto 36 hours after Pyongyang sent a missile over the north of the country, the Prime Minister kept the door open to launching a retaliatory cyber strike. She also provoked a row with China after heaping pressure on Beijing to rein in the rogue state.

Starting her three-day trip to Japan, she said: ‘We are very clear that the actions of North Korea are illegal. I think they are significant actions of provocation.

‘I think that it is outrageous, that is why we will be working with our international partners and re-doubling our efforts to put pressure on North Korea, to stop these illegal activities.’ Mrs May refused three times to say if Britain could use its cyber capabilities to take on North Korea, as she repeatedly avoided questions about the prospect of future military action.

Britain has doubled its investment in defensive and offensive cyber warfare to £1.9billion and set up a National Cyber Security Centre, which is part of GCHQ.

Yesterday, the Prime Minister said she had told China’s President Xi last month that she believes his country has a ‘key role in putting pressure on North Korea to stop the actions they are taking’.

She said: ‘We want to ensure that North Korea desists in this action. We see that the best way of doing that is for China to be bringing pressure to bear on North Korea.’

But last night the Chinese foreign ministry criticised those claiming China should step up pressure on North Korea. Spokesman Hua Chunying said: ‘They only pay attention to sanctions and pressure, and ignore peace talks. When we promote peace talks, they ignore this. You will reap what you sow... The parties directly concerned should take responsibility.’

Mrs May will today attend Japan’s national security council where she will announce the deployment of HMS Argyll to the region in December 2018.

Yesterday Matthew Rycroft, British ambassador to the UN, said Britain wants new sanctions against North Korea which would target workers who are sent to countries such as Russia and China, and whose wages are a source of revenue for Pyongyang.

Meanwhile, a former GCHQ expert warned that Britain’s enemies would use cyber attacks to create panic and disrupt key services such as banks, power plants and the NHS if a Third World War erupts.

Brian Lord, who was deputy director for intelligence and cyber operations at GCHQ, said countries are engaged in a cyber arms race and ‘unpredictable’ North Korea is one of those developing capabilities to penetrate global computer systems.