The US has said it believes North Korea can be disarmed peacefully, following revelations that the communist state is developing a nuclear weapons programme.

I believe we can deal with this threat peacefully, particularly if we work together

George W Bush

President George W Bush said the discovery of the plans to develop nuclear weapons was "troubling".

But he said he saw an opportunity for regional co-operation to persuade the North's President, Kim Jong-Il, to disarm.

Earlier, South Korean media reports indicated the North might be prepared to discuss its reported arms programme with the US.

Different attitudes

"I view this as an opportunity to work with our friends in the region, and work with other countries in the region, to ally against the proliferation of serious weapons," Mr Bush said.

"I believe we can deal with this threat peacefully, particularly if we work together," he said.

If the United States is willing to withdraw its hostile policy toward the North, the North also is ready to resolve security concerns through dialogue

Kim Yong-nam

Mr Bush will meet leaders of China, Japan and South Korea at a Pacific Rim summit later this week to discuss the issue.

According to the South Korean media reports, North Korea's Kim Yong-nam - the country's nominal head of state - indicated he was ready to discuss the issue, saying:

"We consider the recent situation seriously. If the United States is willing to withdraw its hostile policy toward the North, the North also is ready to resolve security concerns through dialogue."

The BBC's Jon Leyne in Washington says Mr Bush is notably more conciliatory towards North Korea than Iraq, which also features in the president's "axis of evil".

Asked to explain the difference in policy, the president insisted that the Iraqi leader, Saddam Hussein, was unique - unique in his defiance of the United Nations and unique in the fact that he had gassed his own people.

European worries

The revelation of the North's nuclear weapons programme has also raised concerns in Europe, where the European Union said it was reviewing its relations with Pyongyang.

External Affairs Commissioner Chris Patten said it was a time for being careful but absolutely determined.

He warned it would be difficult for the EU to continue making financial contributions to help North Korea develop peaceful nuclear energy.

A 1994 accord arranged for an international consortium to build two nuclear power reactors in return for North Korea ending its own programmes.

Correspondents say the accord is one of the few means of exerting leverage over the secretive North, and governments will be reluctant to give it up.