"This is a clear violation of the UN Security Council's relevant resolutions and poses a serious threat not only to the Korean Peninsula but also to global peace and security," the ministry said in a statement.

"The government will not tolerate any kinds of provocation and take stern action," it added. "The North should stop all provocations immediately and move toward the denuclearization path as quickly as possible."

Monday's test marked the ninth missile provocation this year alone and the third of its kind since the inauguration of South Korean President Moon Jae-in on May 10.

The latest provocation came amid growing calls for stepped-up sanctions against the North apparently bent on honing its missile and nuclear capabilities.

Last week, the heads of the group of seven advanced countries agreed that North Korea "increasingly poses new levels of threat of a grave nature to international peace and stability."

They urged the North to comply with all relevant resolutions that ban it from using ballistic technology, while calling on Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear and missile programs in a complete, verifiable and irreversible manner. (Yonhap)