North Korea launched an apparent intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on Sunday ¡ª its first launch this year ¡ª with the missile falling into the Sea of Japan outside Japan¡¯s exclusive economic zone.

The launch, the North¡¯s first since it tested a Hwasong-18 solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile on Dec. 18, landed in waters outside the EEZ, which extends 200 nautical miles (370 kilometers) from Japan¡¯s coast, the Defense Ministry in Tokyo said.

The South Korean military said the launch was of an IRBM-class weapon and traveled some 1,000 km before splashing down.