World powers neared consensus on a statement warning the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) against a nuclear test on Friday amid speculation the country might detonate a device deep inside an abandoned mine as early as this weekend.

DPRK leader Kim Jong-il met the participants at a meeting of commanders and political instructors of the Korean People's Army battalions, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Thursday.

Kim "warmly congratulated the participants of the meeting for having consolidated their battalions," the KCNA reported.

"He expressed his expectation and belief that the battalion commanders and political instructors would further strengthen the battalions," the report said.

Kim's meeting with the military officers came two days after the DPRK announced its plan to conduct a nuclear test.

But KCNA news agency did not mention preparations for a nuclear test in its dispatch.

At the United Nations late Thursday, Security Council members reached broad agreement on a statement warning Pyongyang of unspecified consequences if it exploded a nuclear device.

The UN text, which was sent to governments for possible changes before further discussions on Friday, urged Pyongyang to cancel its planned test and return immediately to the Six-Party Talks aimed at making the Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons.

The statement does not include a US proposal to refer to Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which lists actions such as sanctions and could ultimately lead to a military strike.

Diplomats said officials in China and Russia may try to change the text. Beijing has insisted that the Six-Party Talks should be the main forum for resolving the crisis.

Pyongyang walked out of the talks last year and has refused to return until Washington ends a squeeze on its offshore finances.

The US point man on the DPRK, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, told CNN that predictions were difficult, but a test "could come very soon."

Three senior US officials with access to intelligence told Reuters that US speculation about a possible test centred on Sunday, the anniversary of when Kim became head of the national defence commission in 1997.

They said Pyongyang could also choose Monday, DPRK Workers' Party Day as well as the US holiday for explorer Christopher Columbus.

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Aso was circumspect on the timing, however, saying he did not sense tension was mounting.

"Unlike a rocket, we can't see it, so there is nothing we can say," Aso told reporters in Tokyo.

However, Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yasuhisa Shiozaki, told a news conference: "We are strengthening our readiness with various possibilities in mind."

Source: China Daily