Japan has assessed that the latest missile launch by North Korea was possibly its longest-range test, with its highest altitude surpassing four-thousand kilometers.
 
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said in a news conference early on Wednesday that North Korea launched a missile at around 3:18 a.m., which landed inside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
 
Suga strongly condemned the North's continued missile provocations, adding Tokyo will sternly lodge a protest over the launch.
 
Japanese Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters that the missile is presumed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile class, citing it hit a record-high altitude of well over four-thousand kilometers on a lofted trajectory.
 
He added that further analysis is needed to confirm the missile was a new type or an upgraded model of an existing missile. 
 
Following the missile launch Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.

[Sound bite: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (Japanese)] 
“We will not tolerate North Korea's reckless action that has trampled on the strong will of the international society to resolve the problem. We have lodged a strong protest against North Korea.” 
 
He said that Japan will not back down in the face of provocation but maximize pressure on North Korea.