French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “liar.”

News organizations say Mr. Sarkozy made the remark during a private conversation with U.S. President Barack Obama, last week, as the two leaders sat side-by-side at a meeting of the world's leading 20 economies in France.

The two leaders' comments were inadvertently transmitted to journalists before a news conference.

Mr. Sarkozy said he could not “stand” Mr. Netanyahu anymore. He said the Israeli leader “is a liar.” Mr. Obama told Mr. Sarkozy through an interpreter that “You may be sick of him, but I have to work with him every day.”

The remarks have come at a time when the U.S. has been pressing Israel and the Palestinians to return to U.S. mediated peace talks.

However, there is no immediate indication that the remarks have strained diplomatic ties. Neither Mr. Netanyahu's office nor Mr. Obama's office had any immediate response to the comments.

The French news agency quotes a French foreign ministry spokesman who called news reports of the incident “hype” that was taking attention away from “essential” issues.