Sydney, Feb 9 : A top South Korean general has warned that it will pre-emptively strike against North Korea if it shows intent to use a nuclear weapon.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Jung Seung-jo, pledged to act `even at the risk of war'.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, it reflected acute concern in Seoul and Washington that Pyongyang is about to cross the threshold to possessing a credible nuclear weapons capability.

North Korea has prepared a bomb for a test that will take place within weeks or even days, Chinese and Western analysts and diplomats have said.

North Korea''s third-generation dictator, Kim Jong-un, may choose his father''s birthday, February 16, to test a `larger or more advanced bomb'.

South Korea is the North''s usual rhetorical target, but the US has also been singled out for special treatment, the paper said. (ANI)