The fear is not that Messrs Putin and Bush will find it hard to talk, but that there is little left to talk about: the main argument over Iraq is over, the delayed Moscow treaty on disarmament has been ratified, and Russia is said to be paying more heed to American worries about its support for Iran's nuclear programme.
Obama recently ended his public support for appeasing Iran and seemed to adopt a more confrontational approach as he moved to pass a new round of sanctions at the UN Security Council and when he signed congressional sanctions.
So the U.S. and European positions are also getting closer thanks to their mutual concern over Syria's support for Hezbollah and Iran's growing clout in the region, and fears that Iran could become a nuclear power.
Earlier, aides to Mrs Clinton - who is on a tour of the Gulf to try to build support for more sanctions on Iran - revealed she would press Saudi Arabia to help persuade China to support a tougher stand against Iran's nuclear ambitions.
Moreover, most Arab leaders outside Iraq sounded relieved that liberals, such as the Sunni patrician, Adnan Pachachi, and Shia revivalists who might have looked to Iran for support were omitted from the new team's line-up.
Such a compromise would leave other prickly issues unresolved, such as Iran's support for other groups America deems terrorist.
In two days of congressional hearings, Petraeus painted Iran's support for Shiite extremists as the biggest long-term risk to Iraq's stability.
On the issue of Iran, though, Mr Lapid has expressed strong support for Mr Netanyahu, who has repeatedly warned of the danger of Iran's nuclear programme.
The exposure then of Iran's support for Palestinian Authority-backed terror forces caused the Bush administration to abandon its previous acceptance of Yasser Arafat as a legitimate political leader.
There doesn't appear to be a lot of support within the Security Council for sanctions against Iran.
The United States says Iran is intensifying its support for the Assad regime.
Mr. Ahmadinejad on Monday disputed comments made recently by senior Iranian military officials that acknowledged Iran's military support for Mr. Assad.
Finally, a week after US military spokesmen in Iraq released contradictory statements about Iran's continued support for the insurgency in the country, Iranian forces directly challenged US naval forces in the Straits of Hormuz.
Last Friday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee that Arab support for Israel's bid to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is contingent on its agreeing to support the rapid establishment of a Palestinian state.
Sources close to the story say the AIPAC lobbyist told Gohmert that AIPAC opposes all Iran initiatives that go beyond support for sanctions.
The U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is on a surprise visit to Iraq today, but for the last few days, she's been in Greece and Turkey trying to build support for U.N. actions to stop Iran.
Mr Khan has said he acted to deflect western attention from Pakistan's own nuclear programme (in 1990 America had cut off all military aid to Pakistan because of its then covert bomb-building) and, in the case of Libya and Iran, as a gesture of support for two fellow Muslim countries.
Israel, for one, is focusing on gathering international support to isolate Iran and curb its nuclear program.
Several times Iran postponed the resumption of uranium conversion, which can be a step towards fashioning a nuclear bomb, while Britain, France and Germany, with American support, worked on a package of economic and political incentives for Iran to give up its nuclear plan.
No 10 said Mr Cameron and Mr Obama agreed the need for tough European Council measures to support the latest UN sanctions against Iran.
For sure, America also views Iran's nuclear ambitions and its support of Islamist guerrilla groups in such places as Lebanon and the Gaza Strip as threats.
So alongside our efforts in the U.N. to build international support for sanctions, we have been working behind the scenes building support among finance ministries for additional actions to prevent abuse of the global financial system by Iran.
State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell cited "Iran's destructive behavior in Syria, " a reference to its support for the government's fierce offensive against its opponents.
The United States, France and Britain have been pressing for a strong statement in support of the International Atomic Energy Agency's demand that Iran stop its nuclear activities.
NPR: Russia in the Middle of Stalled U.N.-Iran Nuclear Talks
But Alterman also fears that an Iraq left without U.S. support could turn into a center for international terrorism and a proxy battlefield for regional powers like Iran, Syria and Saudi Arabia.
The Iranian news agency reported that Mr Karzai also described Iran as a friendly country and thanked the Iranian government for its material and moral support.
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