North Korea has fired an unidentified type of projectile, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reports.
According to Yonhap, North Korea fired an unidentified projectile missile at 22:55 GMT Saturday that flew east across the Sea of Japan. Initial reports described it as a ballistic missile, said the BBC.
The missile launched from Banghyon air base in North Pyongang province. It marks the first such test since President Donald Trump took office.
New Secretary of Defense James Mattis visited South Korea last week and reaffirmed a plan to construct a missile defense system in the South Korea later in 2017. He has also said that the U.S. was prepared to deliver an "effective and overwhelming" response should North Korea show aggression with a nuclear capable weapon.
North Korea warned last month that they were close to testing a long-range, intercontinental ballistic missile. They have been under international sanctions since 2006 due to missile testing. Those sanctions became stricter in Sept. 2016 following a large nuclear device test. Their repeated tests in violation of those sanctions have caused fear and anxiety throughout the region.
They also claim they have the technology to carry our a nuclear attack on the U.S. While many experts are skeptical of that claim, a Pentagon correspondent for MSNBC's "Morning Joe" said his conversations with defense officials indicate a concern about North Korea's aggression.
The test fire toward the Sea of Japan comes as Trump is spending a diplomatic weekend with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
