BRATISLAVA, Feb. 24 (Xinhuanet) -- US President George W. Bush left the Slovak capital Bratislava for home on Thursday evening, ending his five-day European tour aimed at healing transatlantic rifts caused by his decision to invade Iraq in March 2003 without international support.

    Bush, who came to Bratislava on Wednesday for his first visit to the Eastern European country, held talks with Slovak officials before meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin for their first meeting since Bush kicked off his second term in January.

    Speaking to reporters after the summit, Bush said he and Putin agreed that Iran and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea should not have nuclear weapons.

    They also agreed to enhance cooperation on nuclear security, fighting terror, boosting the peace process in the Middle East region, as well as Russia's entry to the World Trade Organization, Bush said at a joint press conference with Putin.

    However, Bush said he expressed "concerns" about Moscow's approach to democracy to Putin during their talks.

    Slovakia was the final leg of Bush's European tour, during which Bush called for European help on Iraq, the Middle East peace process, Iran and other international issues.

    Bush visited Belgium and Germany before coming here, and met with nearly all European leaders at NATO and European Union meetings in Brussels. Enditem