Strategic Affairs Minister Avigdor Lieberman told Israel Radio's Farsi broadcast on Monday that the military option is not suitable for dealing with the Iranian nuclear program, adding that economic sanctions are the most effective way to halt the nuclear program.

In an interview in which the minister also fielded questions from people in Iran, Lieberman called on the Iranian people to pressure its leadership.

"The Iranian people are the ones paying the price, as they are already suffering from the extremism of the current leadership, which has private foreign bank accounts and is not adversely affected by the sanctions," said Lieberman, whose comments were translated into Farsi.