SINGAPORE - Singapore on Wednesday (July 5) condemned North Korea's ballistic missile test that the pariah state said was a "gift" for the United States on Independence Day.

The intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) travelled little more than 900km before plunging into the Sea of Japan on Tuesday (July 4).

"This test, of what the DPRK has claimed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile, is a blatant breach of United Nations Security Council resolutions," said Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in an issued statement, using the official name of North Korea.

"This deliberate and belligerent act represents a serious escalation, and jeopardises the peace and stability of the region," it said.

"Such provocations will only raise the tensions on the Korean Peninsula, and do not contribute to the DPRK's security and its people's well-being."

The MFA also strongly urged Pyongyang to "cease its provocations immediately", and reiterated Singapore's long-standing call for the North to "abide by its international obligations and commitments".

Pyongyang has been working to develop nuclear-capable ballistic missiles that could reach the continental US. Experts now say the launch of the Hwasong-14 missile on Tuesday (July 4) showed that North Korea might just be capable of doing that.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the test, conducted on the eve of the US Independence Day holiday, represented "a new escalation of the threat" to the US and its allies, and vowed to take stronger measures.