North Korea fires 'unidentified projectile': Seoul

"North Korea fired an unidentified projectile eastward," the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement, without giving further details.

The Wednesday launch is the latest in a series of military provocations the nuclear-armed state has carried out this year, including its powerful intercontinental missile that can reach the continental United States.

Despite biting sanctions, the North has doubled down on its military modernisation drive, test-firing a slew of banned weapons.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un also warned he could "preemptively" use his nuclear force to counter hostile forces at a meeting with top military brass last week.

The latest firing came just days before the South's incoming president Yoon Suk-yeol, who has vowed a tougher stance on the North, takes office next week.