Amid escalating diplomatic tensions, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird says it's time for Canada to place greater pressure on Iran.
"Now is the time to redouble our efforts diplomatically, to redouble our efforts on those sanctions," he told CTV's Question Period on Sunday.
His comments come days after Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei likened Israel to a "cancerous tumour that should be cut and will be cut," fueling speculation that Israel may be forced to take swift military action.
Acknowledging Khamenei's threat, Baird said global anxieties related to Iran's human rights record and nuclear program are increasing.
"It's not just an Israeli question," he said. "The fear in the Arab world -- in the entire region, the Gulf and the Middle East -- is palpable on this issue."
Speaking from a studio in Tel Aviv, Baird also referenced Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf while talking about Khamenei's threat and the possibility of Israel retaliating.
"You can understand why the Jewish people and why Israel would take him seriously," he said of the Supreme Leader.
"Hitler wrote Mein Kampf more than a decade before he became Chancellor of Germany," he said. "They take these issues pretty seriously here."
Hitler's somewhat autobiographical book Mein Kampf establishes the basic political ideas behind Nazi ideology, the same beliefs behind the Holocaust.
Baird went on to add that Iran is "increasingly" a significant security threat for the West.
"We're tremendously concerned," he said, referring to Iran's nuclear program, human rights record and support of militant groups as particularly troubling issues.
In his nearly two-hour speech, Khamenei affirmed that Iran has assisted militant groups such as the Lebanese Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas in the past.
Baird's call for added pressure on the Middle Eastern nation come against the backdrop of increased global anxiety about Iran's nuclear program.
Iran maintains that its nuclear activity focuses on innocuous causes such as power generation and medical isotopes. Other countries, however, fear Tehran is developing nuclear weapons.
The United States and Israel have indicated that military action against Iran and its nuclear facilities may be on the horizon. That suggestion has roiled Iran, which has said Washington would face defeat if that threat materializes.
For his part, Baird noted that President Barack Obama has said that "all options are on the table" when it comes to pressuring Israel -- including the military option.
"At the same time, I think we have an incredible responsibility to take every single diplomatic effort necessary," he said.
Last November, Canada joined the United States and Britain in slapping new sanctions on Iran. Previous sanctions included prohibiting the export of arms and related material as well as banning new investment in the country's oil and gas sector.
"The sanctions that Canada and other countries have placed are beginning to have a real effect, not just on oil but on banking," said Baird.
