Answering questions at the Oval Office, Bush said North Korea's secret plan to enrich uranium with the idea of developing a nuclear weapon is troubling news.

Bush said that his administration will work with its allies in the region and work with other countries in the region to ally against proliferation of serious weapons.

Bush said: "We will try to convince Kim Zhong-il that he must disarm. To this end, I'm going to be talking to (Chinese President) Jiang Zemin at Crawford. I look forward to a good discussion with the President of China about how we can work together to take our relationship to a new level in dealing with the true threats of the 21st century."

Bush said that he would also see the leaders of Japan and South Korea and Russia during the weekend, in Mexico, when leaders of some of the most important Asian-Pacific countries gather for an annual summit.

Bush said: "I intend to make this an important topic of our discussions. This is a chance for people who love freedom and peace to work together to deal with a -- to deal with an emerging threat. I believe we can deal with this threat peacefully, particularly if we work together. So this is an opportunity to work together. "

(China Daily October 22, 2002)