Camp David: President George W Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Iran and North Korea on September 27 to stop their suspected nuclear weapons programmes.

The leaders, standing by each other at a news conference after two days of talks, also said they looked forward to building a democratic Iraq despite differences over the US-led war.

Bush, speaking about Iran, said, "We share a goal and that is to make sure that Iran doesn't have any nuclear weapon or a nuclear weapons program."

The United States and Russia, he said, "also understand that we need to work together to persuade Iran to abandon any ambitions she may have.

"What's important is we understand that it's in our national interests to insure that Iran doesn't develop a nuclear weapon," Bush said.

Putin said the United States and Russia wanted to send "a clear but respectful signal to Iran to increase its cooperation proliferation".

Agencies