The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff(JCS) said North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile toward the East Sea Sunday night.

According to the JCS, the missile was fired from an area near Pyongyang at about 10:38 p.m. and flew some 570 kilometers before falling into the East Sea.

The JCS said that the military immediately detected, tracked and monitored the ballistic missile and was sharing the launch information with the United States and Japan to further analyze the details.

The latest launch comes amid close monitoring by the South Korean military for a possible launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile(ICBM) by North Korea, with Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Kim Tae-hyo saying last Thursday that Pyongyang could do so sometime this month.

[Photo : YONHAP News]