Barack Obama is wrong to consider relying heavily on Iran to help stabilize Iraq, John McCain said Wednesday.

Speaking to FOX News, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee said he doesn't think it's wise to hold high level diplomatic talks with the Iranians, who are developing nuclear weapons, threatening the existence of Israel and causing much of the unrest in Iraq.

"I'd be opposed to any meeting with the Iranians that would enhance their prestige. ... There's plenty of ways of conversing without putting people on the world stage and not sacrificing our standards and everything that we hold dear," the Arizona senator said.

On Tuesday, Obama, the Illinois senator and Democratic presidential candidate, told Gen. David Petraeus and Amb. Ryan Crocker, the top U.S. military and diplomatic leaders in Iraq, that talks with Tehran are critical to U.S. and Iraqi success.

"Nobody’s asking for a precipitous withdrawal, but I do think that it has to be a measured but increased pressure; and a diplomatic surge that includes Iran. Because if (Prime Minister Nouri al-) Maliki can tolerate as normal neighbor-to-neighbor relations in Iran, then we should be talking to them as well. I do not believe we’re going to be able to stabilize the position without them," Obama said during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee Hearing on progress in Iraq.

McCain and Obama have long clashed over how to deal with Iraq and its eastern neighbor. While McCain frequently has suggested that establishing a permanent presence in Iraq could be beneficial for the U.S., Obama has argued that staying there is harming America's ability to conduct other operations or win over international critics.

For her part, Clinton has also called for more diplomatic engagements with Iran, but has been less enthusiastic than Obama about conducting high-level talks and has in the past suggested it may be necessary to use hardball tactics against the Islamic Republic.