North Korea on Sunday launched its most powerful missile since late 2017, potentially marking an end to nearly four years of leader Kim Jong Un¡¯s self-imposed moratorium on long-range tests.

Japan rushed to analyze the launch, the nuclear-armed country¡¯s seventh round of weapons tests this month, with Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, the government¡¯s top spokesman, convening two hurried news conferences Sunday morning.

¡°Considering that the ballistic missile reached an altitude of about 2,000 kilometers and flew about 800 km, it¡¯s possible that it was a ballistic missile of medium or longer range,¡± Matsuno said.