The Israeli prime minister, Ariel Sharon, has claimed that European peace efforts are anti-Israeli and that only the US matters in deciding the fate of the Palestinians.

In an interview with Newsweek, Sharon said: "I feel an envy and jealousy that the Europeans and all those other countries have time to deal with our problems. I hope the time will come when things are peaceful enough here for me to dedicate time to helping the Europeans with their problems."

Today's Mirror reports that the prime minister has become increasingly frustrated with president Bush's failure to engage in the middle east peace process.

The paper quotes a "close ally" of Tony Blair who says: "He is taking a lot of flak over his support for the US on Iraq and yet he is getting nothing in terms of the peace process. He is desperate to get the Americans to link the two issues."