On Thursday, North Korea test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile just hours before Japan and South Korea hold a summit in Tokyo to discuss issues including cooperation in responding to Pyongyang's threats.
The Defense Ministry said the ICBM-class missile is believed to have fallen outside Japan's exclusive economic zone in the Sea of Japan at around 8:19 a.m.
It was North Korea's second missile test since South Korea and the United States began joint military drills on Monday.
The missile flew for 70 minutes and travelled about 1,000 km at a maximum altitude of over 6,000 km, before falling around 200 km west of Oshima-Oshima, a tiny island west of Hokkaido in northern Japan, according to the ministry.
Japan lodged a protest with Pyongyang and strongly condemned its first ICBM test since Feb. 18.
"We must cooperate even more closely with our allies and like-minded countries" to ensure regional peace and stability, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters.
North Korea has denounced US-South Korean military drills as a rehearsal for invasion.
US National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson stated that the US "strongly condemns" Pyongyang's latest ICBM test, which "needlessly raises tensions and risks destabilizing the security situation in the region."
She added that the US will take all necessary steps to ensure the security of its homeland, Japan and South Korea, its key Asian allies.
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