Obama aides: US bond with Israel remains strong

WASHINGTON (AP) - Top advisers to President Barack Obama say the relationship between the U.S. and Israel remains strong despite sometimes blunt talk and disagreements between the two countries.

David Axelrod tells CNN's "State of the Union" that Israel is a close and valued friend of the United States. He says there's an unshakable bond but that sometimes blunt talk is part of friendship.

Axelrod says the peace process is essential to Israel's security and the administration is doing all it can to move that process forward.

Meanwhile, senior Obama adviser Valerie Jarrett tells ABC's "This Week" that friends like Israel and the United States can disagree without incurring damage. She says what's important is to be able to have frank conversations and move forward.

Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said in the last week that he thought some progress had been made in defusing an unusually public spat with the U.S. over new Israeli housing in east Jerusalem.