North Korea fired a new short-range missile into the Sea of Japan on Monday, defying warnings from UN chief Ban Ki-moon and South Korea after a flurry of similar tests at the weekend.

North Korea fired a new short-range missile into the Sea of Japan on Monday, defying warnings from UN chief Ban Ki-moon and South Korea after a flurry of similar tests at the weekend.

The latest firing, the fifth in three days, was confirmed by a spokesman for the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said it was unclear if the North was testing guided missiles or rockets from multiple launchers.

Pyongyang issued a statement angrily rejecting criticism that the missile exercises were a deliberate attempt to kick off a fresh cycle of tensions.

"Military training ... is the indisputable right of any sovereign nation," the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea said in a  statement.
"Viciously taking issue with our military's rocket firing training ... is an unacceptable challenge and a wanton provocation," the statement said.

North Korea fired three short-range guided missiles off its east coast on Saturday and another on Sunday.

South Korea had labeled the weekend tests "deplorable", while UN chief Ban Ki-moon urged Pyongyang to exercise restraint.
"It is time for them to resume dialogue and lower the tensions," Ban said in Moscow on Sunday.

North Korea argues that the real provocation is coming from South Korea and the United States, which have carried out a series of small and large-scale joint military drills in recent months.