(LEAD) N. Korea fires unidentified ballistic missile toward East Sea: S. Korea military

▲ North Korea fires an intercontinental ballistic missile, in this file photo released by its state media on Nov. 19, 2022. (For Use Only in the Republic of Korea. No Redistribution) (Yonhap)

(LEAD) N Korea-missile

(LEAD) N. Korea fires unidentified ballistic missile toward East Sea: S. Korea military

(ATTN: UPDATES with details from 4th para)

SEOUL, Dec. 18 (Yonhap) -- North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile toward the East Sea, the South Korean military said Sunday, the latest in a series of launches that raised tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced the launch without elaborating.

The launch came a month after the reclusive regime fired an intercontinental ballistic missile that officials says could reach continental United States.

The latest saber-rattling could be Pyongyang's reaction to last week's passage of a U.N. resolution calling for global efforts to improve human rights conditions in the North, observers said.

On Friday, Japan's Cabinet also endorsed a key security document that embraced "counterstrike capability" that would pave the way for the country to launch a counterattack should it and its ally, the United States, come under attack, possibly from the North.

This year, the North has fired more than 60 ballistic missiles, marking a single-year record.

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