Any armed action against Iran will be a "catastrophe," local daily Ha'aretz reported Tuesday, citing visiting Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg.
"I understand why Israel is saying that all the options ( against Iran) are on the table, but I do think that any armed action or any war would be really a catastrophe," said Schwarzenberg, who was on a 30-hour visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories, reported Xinhua.
The 71-year-old foreign minister, whose country will become the Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) in several weeks, is considered a firm supporter of Israel.
Concerning Iran's nuclear program, Schwarzenberg has called upon the EU to exert more pressure on Tehran while avoiding the use of force.
"If we pass the next petrol station here, we will see a sign that says, don't come near the gas station with an open fire," he said.
"In this area (the Middle East), which is the gas station of the whole world, you don't walk with an open fire," he explained. "A war is only justified in very extreme conditions. War is not something that should be easily started and this I mean very seriously."
The United States, Israel and their Western allies accuse Iran of secretly developing nuclear weapons, but Iran insists that its nuclear program is only for generating electricity.
Washington and Israel have consistently refused to rule out the possibility of military strikes against Iran over its refusal to halt its nuclear program. Earlier this year, speculations once flared up that Israel might carry out a military strike against Iran's nuclear sites.
Iran, which calls for Israel's destruction, announced in November that the Islamic Republic has successfully test-fired a new surface-to-surface missile, which has a range of about 1,200 miles (2,000 km).
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad also warned that his country will give a crushing response to any invaders as it possesses new generation missiles that can reach U.S. bases in the Middle East and Israel.
