North Korea has fired a ballistic missile off its east coast, South Korea's military says, the latest in a series of weapons tests as the South and the United States conduct their largest joint military drills in years.
Other details, including the missile's flight range, were not immediately available on Tuesday.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan was collecting information on the missile, and that they have not confirmed any damage within the country related to the launch.
The launch comes two days after North Korea test-fired what it called two strategic cruise missiles from a submarine, and less than a week after leader Kim Jong-un ordered the military to intensify drills to deter and respond to a "real war" if necessary.
South Korean and American forces began 11 days of joint drills, dubbed Freedom Shield 23, on Monday which will be held on a scale not seen since 2017 to counter the North's growing threat. North Korea has long bristled at the allies' drills as a rehearsal for invasion.
On Sunday, North Korea's state media KCNA reported the country has decided to take "important practical" war deterrence measures, saying "war provocations of the United States and South Korea are reaching the red-line."
North Korea has conducted a record number of missile tests and drills in the past year in what it says is an effort to boost its nuclear deterrent and make more weapons fully operational.Â
