US president George Bush has warned North Korea that he will not be bullied over its nuclear programme. He has threatened "tough measures" against the state if it fails to comply with a diplomatic solution to the issue of its possession of nuclear weapons. Speaking after a meeting with Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi, President Bush said: "We will not tolerate nuclear weapons in North Korea. "We will not give in to blackmail. We will not settle for anything less than the complete, verifiable and irreversible elimination of North Korea's nuclear weapons programme." No specific new steps were outlined, but it was agreed that Japan and South Korea should eventually join talks involving the United States, North Korea and China, which started in Beijing last month. At the Beijing talks, North Korea offered to drop its nuclear and missile programmes in return for economic and diplomatic pay-offs. The United States sees such proposals as "blackmail," and has sought to line up other nations in the region in opposing the North Korea. North Korea recently launched its strongest attack on the South since the nuclear crisis erupted seven months ago, threatening its neighbour with "unspeakable disaster" if Seoul aligned itself with Washington against it. **PHOTO CAPTION*** George W. Bush answers a question during a joint press availability with Japan Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Bush's central Texas ranch in Crawford, May 23, 2003. (Photo by Larry Downing/Reuters)