WASHINGTON : United States President George W. Bush defended the nuclear agreement reached on Tuesday with North Korea, calling it ``the best opportunity'' for diplomacy to succeed in ridding the Pyongyang Government of all atomic weapons and capabilities.

"I am pleased with the agreements reached today at the six-party talks in Beijing," he said in a statement."These talks represent the best opportunity to use diplomacy to address North Korea's nuclear programmes," Mr. Bush said. "They reflect the common commitment of the participants to a Korean Peninsula that is free of nuclear weapons."

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice termed the "groundbreaking" deal a good start, but said it was "not the end of the story."

Russia gave a cautious welcome to the agreement."The results of the fifth round of talks will allow an additional impulse to be brought to the six-sided process that is aimed at securing nuclear-free status for the Korean peninsula," the Foreign Ministry said in Moscow.

The agreement would also "create conditions for strengthening peace and security in south-east Asia ... among all states in the region," it said.

In Brussels, the European Union congratulated China for its role in the breakthrough. "This is good news," E.U. Foreign Policy chief Javier Solana said.

"I welcome it and I offer my congratulations to China as host and facilitator, as well as to all the other participants, for their success in securing this agreement," he said.

Mr. Solana also reaffirmed E.U. support for the six-party talks process.

At the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the deal calling it the "first practical stage" toward a nuclear-free Korean peninsula. — Agencies

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