North Korea has fired what is believed to be a missile from its east coast

A statement by the South Korean military described it as an ‘unidentified projectile’.

It is not yet clear what type it was or if it was successful.

The pariah state has increased its test-firing of missiles over recent months, aiming to build nuclear-tipped missiles that can reach the US mainland.

It is still thought to be several years away from this goal, but each new test puts it closer to success.

The North’s nuclear and missile programmes are perhaps the biggest foreign policy challenges to the new leaders in allies Washington and Seoul.

Donald Trump has threatened pre-emptive strikes at the state, accusing leaders of ‘looking for trouble’.

Officials in North Korea warned in response that his ‘troublemaking’ and ‘aggressive’ tweets have led to the ‘extremely tense’ situation on the Korean Peninsula.