INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Jerusalem: An internal report has revealed Israeli foreign ministry officials' reservations over the summit
between US President Donald Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong Un, despite the government's public endorsement.The paper, written by the
ministry's research department and sent to Israeli diplomats worldwide, said Tuesday's summit raised "questions" on North Korea's commitment
to nuclear disarmament, according to private Channel 10 television.The channel on Thursday night quoted the report as saying there were
"substantive gaps between the American statements prior to the summit on the need for 'full, irreversible and verifiable' denuclearisation
and the formulation of the joint statement, which only referred to North Korea's 'complete denuclearisation'.A spokesman for the Israeli
foreign ministry confirmed the veracity of the document to AFP on Friday, but refused to add further details.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu had on Tuesday commended Trump on the "historic summit," calling it "an important step in the effort to rid the Korean Peninsula
of nuclear weapons."But the Israeli foreign ministry document also pointed to doubts in Japan, South Korea, the media and US Congress as to
North Korea's sincerity."Despite Trump's declarations about quick changes expected in North Korea's policy, the way to substantive change --
if that ever comes -- is still long and slow," Channel 10 quoted the report as saying.Trump has sounded a triumphant tone since the summit
in Singapore, where he and Kim signed a joint statement in which the North Korean leader committed "to work toward complete denuclearisation
of the Korean Peninsula."Critics have pointed to the vague wording of the non-binding document, which Trump described as a "deal", and to
concerns among allies about the decision to stop US-South Korean "war games."(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by
TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
