WarSclerotic

WASHINGTON – The White House stressed Friday that the US and Israel are “in full agreement” on preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, following a phone conversation between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

The two men discussed the coordination of their efforts and cooperation in dealing with Iran, according to a statement by Press Secretary Jay Carney.

“The two leaders underscored that they are in full agreement on the shared goal of preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon,” the statement said.

The conversation was their second in three weeks, an unusually short stretch of time for two publicly announced calls, and comes after criticism of Obama for declining a meeting with Netanyahu while the premier was in the US for the UN General Assembly and amidst discord between the two countries on how best to thwart the threat from Tehran.

Netanyahu has called for the US to set out clear parameters for what nuclear activity by Iran would trigger a military attack, and he emphasized the importance of red lines in a speech to the UN Thursday.

But his comments to the world body also suggested the timeline for any Israel action would not come until well into next year, reducing some of the immediate tension between the two countries.

“The temperature is lower than it had been,” an Obama aide said after the call.

The White House readout also noted that Netanyahu “welcomed President Obama’s commitment before the United Nations General Assembly to do what we must to achieve that goal.”

Netanyahu also spoke by phone Friday with Obama challenger Mitt Romney.

Romney, speaking to reporters on his campaign plane, said he and Netanyahu agreed that Iran must be denied nuclear capabilities but did not agree on specific “red lines” to confront Tehran.

“I do not believe in the final analysis we will have to use military action,” Romney said. “I certainly hope we don’t have to. I can’t take that action off the table.”

Friday’s White House phone call followed a meeting between Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in New York Thursday night. The meeting lasted one hour and 15 minutes and was entirely one-on-one, according to the State Department.

The pair had a lengthy discussion on Iran, and also discussed developments in the broader region and the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. “It was an open, wide-ranging constructive conversation,” the State Department statement said.

Reuters contributed to this report.