Netanyahu on Iran: ‘This is a bad deal’

(CNN) - Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a stern warning against the potential deal over Iran’s nuclear program between Tehran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, along with Germany,.

In an interview that aired Sunday morning on CNN's “State of the Union” with Candy Crowley, Netanyahu said that he prefers a diplomatic solution, but the framework of the current deal being floated will not work.

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"This is a bad deal," he told Crowley. "And in fact, if you do a bad deal, you may get to the point where your only option is a military option. So a bad deal actually can lead you to exactly the place you don't want to be."

The deal, which will be further discussed in another round of talks this week, calls for loosening economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for a suspension of part of its nuclear program.

"I think, if you want a peaceful solution, as I do, then the right thing to do is ratchet up the sanctions," Netanyahu added.

Representatives from Tehran have been meeting this month with their counterparts from the United States, the four other permanent members of the Security Council, and Germany, collectively known as the P5+1. Talks continue this week in Geneva, Switzerland, after the last round of negotiations ended with each side blaming the other for the lack of an agreement.

Still, the U.S. and other countries are "getting close" to an interim deal with Iran that would prevent its nuclear program "from advancing, and roll it back" in key areas, a senior U.S. administration official said.

And U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Israel on Friday to discuss the Iranian nuclear negotiations, Netanyahu said Sunday at the start of the weekly Cabinet meeting.

But Netanyahu remains cautious.

"Iran is practically giving away nothing. It's making a minor concession, which they can reverse in weeks, and you endanger the whole sanctions regime that took years to make" and that has effectively prevented Iran from pursuing nuclear ambitions, he said.

"If you continue the pressure now, you can get Iran to cease and desist," he added later. "You see, the options aren't really a bad deal - and this is a bad deal - or there's a third option. Sanctions. Increase the sanctions."

After he dismissed the "bad deal" repeatedly, he was pressed by Crowley on whether there was any daylight between his position and that of U.S. President Barack Obama, who’s not calling for an immediate boost in sanctions as preferred by Netanyahu.

"The best of friends can have different opinions. We agree on a lot of things, and some things we disagree on," he said, later adding, "We all want the same thing."

- CNN’s Ashley Killough contributed to this report

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