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WASHINGTON (AFP) - Republican Senator John McCain on Wednesday joined his former rival President Barack Obama in calling for a nuclear-free world, a goal previously formulated by former president Ronald Reagan.

During a lengthy speech on the Senate floor marking the unveiling of a statue of Reagan in the Capitol, the veteran Arizona lawmaker recalled how his "personal hero" had dreamed of a world free of nuclear weapons.

"That is my dream too," McCain said.

"This is a distant and difficult goal. And we must proceed toward it prudently and pragmatically, and with a focused concern for our security and the security of allies who depend on us."

In an April visit in Prague, Obama had called for a nuclear-free world.

"The time has come to take further measures to reduce dramatically the number of nuclear weapons in the world's arsenals," McCain said.

While acknowledging the importance of a nuclear deterrent, he called weapons of mass destruction "the most abhorrent and indiscriminate form of warfare known to man."

McCain, who fought -- and lost -- a fierce battle against Obama for the White House last year, also urged a tougher stance toward US foes Iran and North Korea.

"The US must lead the world not only in reducing the size of existing nuclear arsenals, but also in reversing the course of nuclear proliferation," he said.

"This requires a tough and tough-minded approach to both Iran and North Korea, both of whom have gotten away with too much for far too long," he said, qualifying Pyongyang's latest nuclear test "the latest provocative demonstration of the troubling reality that the world faces today."

Obama welcomed McCain's comments.

"I have outlined an ambitious strategy for promoting arms control and preventing nuclear terrorism and proliferation, which is already bearing fruit," the president said in statement.

"I look forward to working with Senator McCain and the entire Congress to ensure that we accomplish these goals together for the American people and the security of the entire planet."

The five permanent United Nations Security Council members, with former Cold War rivals Russia and the United States, are in talks on a new resolution to punish North Korea for its May 25 nuclear test -- the second since 2006.

The United States is pushing for tougher sanctions on the North over its nuclear defiance, but Russia has in the past opposed such measures.

Global powers fear Iran's nuclear drive could be a cover for efforts to build an atomic bomb, but Tehran insists it is aimed purely at generating electricity for a growing population.