The United States' State Department confirmed on Saturday that the Democratic People's Republic of Korea launched a rocket at 0230 GMT on Sunday, Xinhua reported.
"We have had a launch. I don't know the type of missile," U.S. State Department spokesman Fred Lash told reporters on a conference call.
The DPRK's launch of a long-range missile is a "provocative act," the State Department said, adding that the United States will take "appropriate steps" in response to this.