The White House has reaffirmed its position that it would seek a diplomatic settlement to North Korea’s nuclear standoff.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said on Thursday that President George W. Bush is pursuing diplomatic solutions to the North’s nuclear weapons situation after close consultations with other countries.

McClellan added Washington believes that the countries around the Korean Peninsula are fully aware of the importance of nuclear disarmament of the region, alluding to the significance of reopening the stalled six-way nuclear talks.

The spokesman made the remarks responding to a question asking what the United States would do if a similar situation to Iraq's occurred in North Korea or Iran.

The White House also effectively acknowledged that its hunt for Iraqi weapons of mass destruction — a two-year search costing millions of dollars — has ended without finding the stockpiles that President Bush had cited as a justification for overthrowing Saddam Hussein. However, Bush's spokesman said the president had no regrets about invading Iraq.