Obama, Cameron discuss world situations over phone

U.S. President Barack Obama on Sunday spoke with British Prime Minister David Cameron to discuss the situations in Ukraine, Afghanistan, and Iraq, as well as the ongoing talks on Iran's nuclear program.

Obama and Cameron expressed concern about the increasing tensions and ongoing violence in eastern Ukraine and agreed upon the need for Russia to take immediate steps to de-escalate the situation, the White House said in a statement.

The leaders agreed Europe and the United States should take further coordinated measures to impose costs on Russia if it does not take immediate steps toward de-escalation, according to the statement.

On Afghanistan, Obama and Cameron welcomed recent progress toward resolving the election impasse and agreed to continue to urge all parties to play constructive and helpful roles leading to the peaceful and democratic transition of power in Afghanistan, it said.

The election standoff ended Sunday after two days of intense talks between two rival candidates and visiting U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. The candidates agreed to an audit of all ballots cast during June 14 presidential runoff.

Obama and Cameron also called on Iran to take the necessary steps to assure the international community that its nuclear program will be exclusively peaceful and reaffirmed their commitments to make progress toward a sustainable agreement.

With regard to Iraq, the two leaders agreed to keep working with all parties to form an inclusive and representative government that can work to promote the interests of all Iraqis, said the statement.

Xinhua