North Korea preparing new ballistic missile test

North Korea is allegedly preparing to test-launch an intermediate-range ballistic missile after an earlier attempt on April 15 failed, South Korean state media reported on Tuesday.

South Korea's Defence Ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyun did not confirm the reports, but uttered his belief that the Pyongyang government would try to fix the problem following the failed launch.

The US described Pyongyang's previous attempt to launch what is believed to be a Musudan missile as "fiery, catastrophic."

With a range of more than 3,000 kilometres, the missile could potentially be used to hit the US territory of Guam.

The missile can also be fired from a mobile launcher, but is yet to be flight-tested.

North Korea has been increasingly demonstrating its military might as of late, having tested its fourth nuclear bomb on Jan. 6 and launched a long-range rocket on Feb. 7.

Pyongyang also tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile on Saturday, defying UN resolutions against Kim Jong-un's administration that was agreed upon unanimously in March by the Security Council.

North Korea said its submarine-launched ballistic missile test on Saturday was a "great success" that provided "one more means for powerful nuclear attack."

The war between Pyongyang and Seoul in 1950-53, which saw the US-backed South pitted against the Soviet-backed North, technically never ended.

North Korea frequently makes threats against the South, and has even threatened to carry out nuclear strikes on the US in response to joint naval drills close to its waters.

Washington and Seoul are talking about a possible deployment of a new missile-defence system, known as the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), as a precaution against Pyongyang's threats.

Speaking in a CBS interview that aired on Tuesday, US President Barack Obama referred to North Korea as an "erratic" country with an "irresponsible" leader.

Obama said the United States "is spending a lot more time positioning our missile development systems, so that even as we try to resolve the underlying problem of nuclear development inside of North Korea, we're also setting up a shield that can at least block the relatively low-level threats that they're posing now."

Adding that there "was no easy solution" to the North Korean threat, Obama seemed to rule out military action against Pyongyang, saying such a move would not only have humanitarian costs but also a potential impact on the South.