North Korea confirms third nuclear test

North Korea says it has successfully carried out its third underground nuclear test, in a widely-anticipated move set to draw international condemnation, Agence-France-Presse reports.

Pyongyang said the test involved a "miniaturised" device and was carried out in a "perfect manner".

The confirmation came three hours after seismic activity was detected at North Korea's nuclear test site.

The UN had warned of "significant consequences" if Pyongyang went ahead.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has condemned the test as a "clear and grave violation" of UN resolutions and a "deeply destabilising" provocation.

The Security Council is to hold an emergency meeting at 14:00 GMT on Tuesday in New York, diplomats say.The claim to have tested a "miniaturised" device is likely to alarm observers. The US and North Korea's neighbours fear Pyongyang's ultimate goal is to produce a nuclear device small enough to fit on a long-range missile, something it is not yet believed to have mastered.

In December it put a satellite into space using a three-stage rocket - a move condemned by the UN as a banned test of missile technology.

North Korea said the nuclear test - which comes on the eve of US President Barack Obama's State of the Union address - was to "to protect our national security and sovereignty against the reckless hostility of the United States".

It is the first such test under new leader Kim Jong-un, who took over the leadership after his father Kim Jong-il died in December 2011.