SEOUL, January 15. /TASS/. South Korea’s armed forces will respond forcefully to Pyongyang’s direct provocations, while Seoul is still analyzing data on the intermediate-range ballistic missile launched on January 14 by the North Koreans, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.

"We issue a serious warning against provocative behavior that violates UN Security Council resolutions prohibiting the use of ballistic missile technology; we demand a halt to such actions," the ministry said in a statement.

"Our forces are strengthening the practical US-South Korea extended capabilities to deter and respond to missile threats from North Korea. The armed forces are strengthening independent capabilities, including the three-axis system," the ministry added. "Our army, based on the joint defense capability with the US, is closely monitoring North Korea's actions. If Pyongyang launches a direct provocation against us, we will give a crushing response based on the principle of 'immediate, decisive and to the end,'" the ministry said.

"North Korea's current missile launch poses a serious threat to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, we strongly condemn it as a clear provocation," South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson Lee Sung Joon said.

When asked to comment on North Korea’s claim that it tested a solid-fuel intermediate-range ballistic missile with a hypersonic warhead on January 14, he said that the South Korean military was analyzing the data in cooperation with the US and Japanese intelligence agencies.

The January 14 test of North Korea’s solid-fuel ballistic missile was a planned test and had nothing to do with the situation in the region, the North Korean Central News Agency reported.