The Global Times, the English-language outlet of the Beijing government mouthpiece People’s Daily China, reports Lieutenant General Wang Gongguang warning of the need to be ‘mentally prepared for it anytime’.

“China should be psychologically prepared for a potential Korean War, and the Northeast China regions should be mobilised for that,” he says.

China should prepare to defend against war in Korean Peninsula: expert https://t.co/QAwwsryH32pic.twitter.com/Q4rtqgLwuq

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) December 18, 2017

General Gongguang was urging the deployment of antimissile systems and troops in the border area with North Korea in anticipation of conflict between North and South Korea, and others such as Japan and the United States

Once war erupts, South Korea will be the most damaged, followed by China, Wang said, adding that there will be a huge risk of being exposed to nuclear contamination and earthquakes.

“Such mobilisation is not to launch a war, but for defensive purposes,” he said.

China should be prepared for a serious situation, even military conflict, on the #KoreanPeninsula: Zhu Feng, professor at the Nanjing University.#GTAnnualConference2018 (Photo: Li Hao/GT) pic.twitter.com/kHXVTuTb1K

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) December 16, 2017

The Global Times reported ‘military expert and TV commentator’ Song Zhongping as adding there needed to be preparations for refugees and any ‘spillover’ of conflict.

“Defensive action could lead to engagement if US action on the Korean Peninsula threatens China’s core interests,” the publication quotes Song as saying.

South Korea’s foreign minister will visit Japan this week to meet her Japanese counterpart, with Seoul and Tokyo seeking to boost co-operation over the handling of North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.

The need to confront the threat posed by North Korea’s ballistic missile and nuclear tests comes despite lingering tension over the issue of sexual slavery during Japan’s wartime occupation of Korea.

Kang Kyung-wha will arrive in Tokyo on Tuesday and meet Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono during her two-day visit, her first trip to Japan as South Korea’s top diplomat, the foreign ministry in Seoul said in a statement.

“The two ministers will exchange views on issues of common interests focusing on bilateral relations and North Korea-related issues, including its nuclear program,” the ministry statement said.

South Korea and Japan are seeking to improve security co-operation over North Korea, but there have been conflicting signals over whether they can resolve a feud over “comfort women” who were forced to work in Japan’s wartime military brothels.

Ties have been frozen over the issue, with South Korean President Moon Jae-in has promising to renegotiate an unpopular 2015 pact signed with Japan. Under that pact, Japan apologised again to former comfort women and promised 1 billion yen ($A11.6 million) for a fund to help them. The two governments agreed the issue would be “irreversibly resolved” if both fulfilled their obligations.