Beijing opposes North Korea's nuclear and missile development, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Wednesday, hours after Pyongyang test-launched a ballistic missile from a submarine towards Japan.

"China is opposed to North Korea's nuclear and missile development process and is opposed to any actions that trigger tensions on the Korean peninsula," Wang told reporters after a meeting with the foreign ministers of Japan and South Korea.

"China is opposed to any actions that violate UN Security Council Resolution 2270," Wang added, referring to a resolution passed in March that condemns North Korea's military threats, including missile development and nuclear tests.

He also said that the three ministers discussed the situation on the Korean peninsula.

Japan and South Korea regularly condemn Pyongyang for its nuclear and missile development, but are frustrated by what they see as a lack of pressure on the country by the North's economic lifeline China.

The trilateral meeting of the foreign ministers, their first since March 2015, comes as Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing have struggled to find common ground on how to deal with North Korea.

Wang did not directly refer to Wednesday's launch, but it came as he was making the first visit to Japan by a Chinese foreign minister since Xi Jinping became president in 2013 and could be seen as an embarrassment for Beijing.

South Korean foreign minister Yun Byung-Se condemned the launch.

"I stressed the current situation is urgent and serious as the North has quickly improved its nuclear and ballistic missile capability more than ever, including this morning's launch of an SLBM," he said, referring to a submarine-launched ballistic missile.

Japanese foreign minister Fumio Kishida, also condemned the launch.

"We can never accept the provocative act and protested to North Korea," he told reporters.

"At today's meeting, we confirmed that Japan, China and South Korea... will strongly call on North Korea to refrain from provocative acts and comply with the UN resolution."

Wang had earlier called for calm after news of the launch emerged.

"We hope that (the situation) will not become more tense and complicated," he told reporters ahead of trilateral talks, Jiji Press reported.

The talks begin as Japan, China and South Korea are themselves at odds over various territorial disputes and a US missile defence system.

Sino-Japanese tensions over a territorial dispute have risen this month, while China and South Korea have sparred over the planned deployment in the latter country of a US anti-missile system.

The Tokyo-Seoul relationship is also prone to periodic tension due to the legacy of Japan's harsh colonisation of the Korean peninsula from 1910-45.

US military condemns N. Korea missile launch 'provocation'
Washington (AFP) Aug 23, 2016 - The US military confirmed that North Korea has test-fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile, condemning the hermit state's latest "provocation" and vowing to raise concerns at the United Nations.

US Strategic Command said the launch of what was believed to be a KN-11 missile off the coast of Sinpo, North Korea, "did not pose a threat to North America," citing analysis by the North American Aerospace Defense Command.

The missile, launched at 2029 GMT Tuesday (4:59 am Wednesday local time), fell into the Sea of Japan some 300 miles (480 kilometers) off the coast of North Korea.

"Our commitment to the defense of our allies, including the Republic of Korea and Japan, in the face of these threats, is ironclad," said Commander Gary Ross, a Pentagon spokesman.

"We remain prepared to defend ourselves and our allies from any attack or provocation.

"We call on North Korea to refrain from actions that further raise tensions in the region and focus instead on taking concrete steps toward fulfilling its commitments and international obligations."

Several UN Security Council resolutions demand that Pyongyang suspend all of its ballistic missile program activities.

"We intend to raise our concerns at the UN to bolster international resolve in holding the DPRK accountable for these actions," Ross said, using an acronym for the North's formal name.

The State Department issued a similar statement.