The United States and South Korea say a North Korean missile test Wednesday ended in failure, Voice of America reported.

A spokesman for the US Pacific Command said the missile appeared to have exploded within seconds of launching from the Kalma peninsula, in the eastern part of the country.

South Korea's military said the apparent test launch did not go off normally.

Neither country gave details about what type of missile was tested, and both said they were continuing to analyze the launch.

Earlier this month, North Korea fired four ballistic missiles into the sea off Japan in response to annual US-South Korea military drills, which the North sees as a preparation for war.

Three of the missiles flew about 1,000 kilometers and landed in Japanese waters, the Pentagon said. US officials said the weapons were medium-range rockets that did not pose a threat to North America.

Source: MENA