Pakistan, Aug. 12 -- North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile toward waters off its eastern coast on Wednesday, raising tensions before major US-South Korea drills.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile launched from the Wonsan area at around 6am local time.

Read more: North Korea fires missile ahead of joint drills

The launch came six days after North Korea fired another ballistic missile from the same area. South Korea and the United States will hold Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises from August 17 to 27.

The missile reportedly travelled about 700 kilometres, according to South Korean and Japanese defence authorities. Seoul has not yet identified its exact missile type.

Analyst Hong Min said the launch could be p...