US Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Friday that the US "must lead the world in stopping Iran’s genocidal regime from obtaining a nuclear weapons capability"

US Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney said Friday that the US "must lead the world in stopping Iran's genocidal regime from obtaining a nuclear weapons capability."

Romney's comments came after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday that Israel is a tumor that needs to be wiped out. The Republican presidential candidate said: "We have seen the horrors of history. We will not stand by. We will not watch them play out again."

"Ahmadinejad’s latest outrageous remarks are just another reminder of what is at stake," Romney stated. The comments by Ahmadinejad came at a rally marking Al-Quds Day.

Congressman Paul Ryan, Romney's running mate, also referred to Iran at an election rally in Virginia, saying a Republican administration will pull out all the stops in order to protect America's allies across the world.

"Under President Romney our adversaries will think twice about challenging America and our allies because we believe in peace through strength," Ryan vowed.