WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden has discussed the growing insurgency in Iraq with Turkey’s leader for the second time in three days.

Biden spoke by phone Friday with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan (REH’-jehp TY’-ihp UR’-doh-wahn). The White House says they consulted on the danger that the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant poses for regional and global security.

The White House says Biden and Erdogan agreed that Iraqis must unite to address the security challenges. Biden also affirmed the U.S. offer to help Turkey recover diplomats who were kidnapped in Iraq.

Biden and Erdogan last spoke Wednesday as insurgents were seizing key Iraqi cities and pressing closer to Baghdad. President Barack Obama says he’s considering military options to help Iraq fight the militants.

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