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U.S. President Joe Biden made a long-awaited first phone call to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday after a delay that had seen Washington deny it was snubbing Israel’s leader, Reuters reported.

There had been speculation that the Democratic president was signaling displeasure over Netanyahu’s close ties with former President Donald Trump, who called the right-wing leader two days after his inauguration in 2017.

Biden has spoken with about a dozen other world leaders since taking office on Jan. 20. The White House had said that Netanyahu, who differs with Biden on some Middle East issues such as Iran, would be the first regional leader he would call.

Biden and Netanyahu spoke for about an hour on issues including the “Iranian threat” and Israel’s budding relations with Arab and Muslim countries, Netanyahu’s office said in a statement. “The two leaders noted their longstanding personal connection,” it added.

The White House said they discussed, among other issues, the need for “continued close consultation” on Iran.

Biden told Netanyahu he intends to strengthen defense cooperation with Israel and stressed his support for normalization of relations with its neighbors. He also “underscored the importance” of working toward peace between Israelis and Palestinians, the statement said.

The White House had denied that the delay in a Biden call was meant to disrespect Netanyahu, with spokeswoman Jen Psaki saying last week that it was “not an intentional dis”.