North Korea's ballistic missile and nuclear weapons programmes are banned by United Nations Security Council resolutions that have sanctioned the country.

North Korea - formally known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) - has been under UN sanctions for its missile and nuclear programs since 2006.

The launch, reported at the time by militaries in South Korea and Japan, was condemned by the US and leaders in Seoul and Tokyo, among others.

North Korea has criticised recent US-South Korean joint military exercises as escalating tensions, and has stepped up weapons tests in recent months.

Photos released by the country's government media showed Kim Jong Un watching the launch with his daughter, and included pictures from space apparently shot by a camera mounted on the missile.

The launches come just two days after North Korea fired an ICBM into the sea off Japan's west coast, prompting the US to hold joint air exercises with South Korea and separately with Japan.

Analysts say North Korea is likely to conduct more weapons tests, including a possible new solid-fuel missile which could help the North deploy its missiles faster in the event of a war.

Japanese authorities said the missile plunged into waters inside Japan's exclusive economic zone more than an hour after it was launched, suggesting the weapon was one of Pyongyang's largest missiles.

In Seoul, Biden and his South Korean counterpart Yoon Suk-yeol agreed to hold bigger military drills and deploy more US strategic assets if necessary to deter North Korea's intensifying weapons tests.

Pyongyang has conducted a blitz of sanctions-busting weapons tests this year, including launching an intercontinental ballistic missile at full range for the first time since 2017.

South Korean and US officials have concluded that the March 24 launch appears to have been a Hwasong-15 ICBM, a defence ministry official says, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The Hwasong-17, first unveiled in October 2020, had never previously been successfully test fired.