Washington: North Korea's declaration that it possessed nuclear weapons is an old game of blackmailing, US President George W Bush has said.

"They are back to the old blackmail game," Bush told NBC television on April 24, when asked about reports that Pyongyang had already processed 8,000 spent fuel rods deemed suitable for the production of new nuclear weapons.

About the weapons, Li Gun, the top North Korean official reportedly told US Assistant Secretary of State James A Kelly, leader of the US delegation to the tripartite nuclear talks among China, North Korea and the United States, "We cannot dismantle them. It is up to you whether we do a physical demonstration or transfer them."

"One of our goals and objectives must be to strengthen the non-proliferation regime, and get the whole world focused on proliferation of weapons of mass destruction or the materials for weapons of mass destruction," Bush told NBC.

"North Korea is making my case that we have got to come together, we started that process, and the Chinese for the first time are partners at the table."

"I look forward to hearing what the Chinese say, at being rebuffed by the North Koreans, they too believe that the (Korean) peninsula ought to be nuclear weapons free," Bush said.

"This will give us the opportunity to say to the North Koreans that we are not going to be threatened," he added.

During the tripartite talks that ended on April 25, US has stressed it would accept nothing less than the complete and verifiable dismantling of the North Korean nuclear programme.

PTI