North Korea test-fires ballistic missile from submarine

North Korea test-fired what may have been a type of ballistic missile intended to be launched from a submarine, South Korean and U.S. officials have said.

The test fire came just a couple days before the expected resumption of nuclear talks with the United States.

The missile flew about 280 miles at a maximum altitude of 565 miles after liftoff from an unspecified place near the North's eastern coastal town of Wonsan, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. The South Korean military said it was working with U.S. intelligence authorities to analyze the details of the launch.

In a statement issued by a State Department spokesperson, the U.S. called on North Korea "to refrain from provocations”.

South Korea expressed concern and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe condemned the launch, saying it was a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Japan said that at least part of the missile had landed inside the country's economic exclusive zone. If confirmed, it would be the first North Korean missile that has landed that close to Japan since November 2017.

Nuclear negotiations have been at a standstill for months following a February summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and President Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam. Those talks broke down after the U.S. rejected North Korean demands for broad sanctions relief in exchange for partially surrendering its nuclear capabilities.

The two leaders then met at the Demilitarized Zone border between the two Koreas in June and pledged to reopen working-level talks within weeks.