(JTA) — Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs apologized for its ambassador to Iran displaying a cartoon in which two doves defecate on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In a statement last Friday, the Swiss government said it “regrets the use of this cartoon and considers it tasteless,” Reuters reported.

Ambassador Giulio Haas displayed the image on a large screen Thursday while speaking before hundreds of Swiss and Iranian business people at a Zurich event promoting trade between the two countries. In his speech, Haas described Iran as a “pole of stability in a very, very unsafe region,” according to Reuters.

“Ambassador Haas did not intend to insult anybody with the cartoon,” the foreign affairs department statement said. “If that is the case, however, he regrets it and seeks the pardon of everyone who could have felt insulted.” The cartoon, in which doves with Iranian and American flags on their chests relieve themselves atop Netanyahu’s head, appears to reference the Iran nuclear deal, which Israel opposes.

Switzerland began lifting some sanctions on Iran this month, according to Reuters.