US President George W. Bush said Saturday it was just a "matter of time " before US troops find banned Iraqi arms, as he praised Australian Prime Minister John Howard for backing Saddam Hussein's ouster.

During a meeting at Bush's secluded Texas ranch, the two leaders also agreed to use dialogue to end the crisis over North Korea's nuclear weapons after being briefed in person by US envoy James Kelly, an Australian official said.

Bush and Howard, who won a coveted invitation to the "Prairie Chapel" ranch by being one of four leaders to send combat troops to Iraq, traded compliments during a chummy press conference against a backdrop of hay bales and a barn.

The US leader, who gave his guest a pair of monogrammed cowboy boots bearing a map of Australia, paid Howard the "biggest compliment" possible in his home state, telling him: "You're kind of like a Texan."