North Korea fired a ballistic missile on Monday towards the sea off its east coast, South Korea's military said.

A Japanese government alert and its coast guard also said North Korea had fired what appeared to be a ballistic missile. The projectile appeared to have landed outside Japan's exclusive economic zone area, the NHK broadcaster said.

Japan's NTV broadcaster said the projectile was a short-range ballistic missile, citing a Japanese government official.

The two countries' governments did not immediately have further details.

North Korea said last week that it had test-launched a strategic

cruise missile to test a large warhead, and a new anti-aircraft missile.

Earlier in April, the North fired a new hypersonic missile as part of its development of solid-fuelled missiles for all ranges of its arsenal.

The North has defied a ban by the United Nations Security Council on developing ballistic missiles, rejecting Council resolutions as infringing on its sovereign right to defend itself. (Reporting by Hyunsu Yim in Seoul and Rocky Swift in Tokyo; Writing by Jack Kim Editing by Kim Coghill and Gerry Doyle)