Kim urges N.Korea soldiers to ready for 'impending conflict'

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has chided his soldiers, telling them to be ready for "impending conflict with the United States," Pyongyang media reported on Saturday as satellites showed a nuclear test could be near, AFP reported.

The report comes as US President Barack Obama finishes up a two-day visit to South Korea, where he warned the North it faced tougher sanctions if the underground detonation went ahead.

It also comes after Pyongyang claimed it had been holding a young American for two weeks.
Kim, the supreme commander of the North's 1.2-million-strong armed forces often visits military units to deliver on-the-spot "guidance" on ways to strengthen preparedness.

He usually lavishes them with praise and presents gifts such as rifles or binoculars as symbols of their vigilance.

But after watching a shelling drill by an artillery sub-unit on Friday, he upbraided soldiers for their lax approach, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

"Dear Supreme Commander Kim Jong-Un said nothing is more important than preparing for combat now, in the face of an impending conflict with the United States", KCNA reported.

Pointing at a map, Kim ordered the unit to establish a firing position and start the shelling exercise, the agency said, without revealing the location.

"Watching the drill, he severely criticised the sub-unit for failing to make good combat preparation" citing the time it had taken to deploy, it said.