North Korea has fired an "unknown projectile" which appeared to fail immediately after launch, South Korea's military said. The suspected missile was fired from an airfield outside the capital Pyongyang.
The airfield has been the site of several recent launches, including two that the US and South Korea said were tests of a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) system. North Korea said those tests were for developing components of a reconnaissance satellite.
North Korea has so far carried out nine weapons tests this year, including what the US claims were tests of parts of a new ICBM, saying they were likely experimental launches before a likely full-range ICBM launch.
With a minimum range of 5,500km (3,417 miles), ICBMs can reach the US. They are designed for nuclear arms delivery.
The UN prohibits North Korea from ballistic and nuclear weapons tests, and has imposed strict sanctions.
The North had put a moratorium in place on testing long-range ballistic missiles and nuclear tests after talks with then US President Donald Trump. But in 2020, Mr Kim announced he was no longer bound by this promise.
The U.S. military's Indo-Pacific Command called it a "ballistic missile launch." The command did not mention the reported failure, but condemned the launch and urged Pyongyang to refrain from further destabilising acts.
A source at Japan's Ministry of Defence also called the projectile a potential ballistic missile, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported.
Debris fell in or near Pyongyang after the failed test, Seoul-based NK News reported, citing unnamed witnesses and a photograph of the test showing a red-tinted ball of smoke at the end of a zig-zagging rocket launch trail in the sky above the city.
North Korea has said it tested cameras and other systems for a spy satellite and released what it said were photos taken from space during those tests, but it didn’t confirm what rocket or missile it launched.
Experts say North Korea aims to boost its ICBM capability while trying to place its first spy satellite into orbit. The North Korean ruler, Kim Jong-un, has vowed to acquire an improved ICBM and a spy satellite among an array of sophisticated weapons systems he says he needs to cope with what he calls American hostility.
North Korea also appears to be restoring some tunnels at its shuttered nuclear test site, US and South Korean officials have said.
