North Korea fired Saturday evening what appears to be a submarine-launched ballistic missile from the Sea of Japan, according to the South Korean military, as North Korea's state-run television releases still photographs of leader Kim Jong Un supervising tthe missile test.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch took place off Sinpo in the eastern part of North Korea at around 6.30pm South Korea time.
Details, including whether or not the launch was successful, were not immediately known.
The incident came two days before the 84th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Army.
The SLBM, along with the inter-continental ballistic missile, is a vehicle for delivering nuclear weapons and would pose a threat to countries including Japan, South Korea and the United States if North Korea succeeds in developing it.
In May last year, North Korea also test fired a ballistic missile from a submarine and said it was successful. In a similar launch conducted in November, the country appears to have failed in its attempt.
The Washington Free Beacon news website reported in January that North Korea succeeded in test launching an SLBM off Sinpo in December.
North Korea has carried out a series of provocative actions recently despite the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) adoption in March of the toughest-yet sanctions on the country for its fourth nuclear test in January and its launch of a rocket using banned ballistic missile technology in February.
Earlier this month, it tried but failed to test fire what was presumed to be a Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile.
24 Apr 2016 | 2,604 views