Jpost.com: Olmert denies nuke admission

I can't recall ever seeing any expression of serious doubt on the matter of Israel's having nukes. If there is any value to not formally admitting it, then perhaps it is still not formally admitted:

The German and Italian governments, involved in international efforts to stop Iran's nuclear program, give billions of dollars in loan guarantees each year to firms doing business with Iran, a practice that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is expected to forcefully come out against during his talks over the next two days in Berlin and Rome.

The Jerusalem Post, which first reported on Sunday that Jerusalem was miffed at Berlin for this practice, has learned that Olmert plans to tell his German and Italian hosts that it is "incompatible" to talk about sanctions while providing incentives for local firms to do business with Teheran.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister's Office denied there had been any change in Israel's long-standing policy of nuclear ambiguity, after Olmert appeared to admit that Israel had nuclear capability in an interview with the German television network SAT 1.

Regarding Israel's alleged nuclear capabilities, during his television interview, Olmert became agitated when asked if the fact that Israel possessed nuclear power weakened the West's position against Iran.

"Israel is a democracy, Israel doesn't threaten any country with anything, never did," he said. "The most that we tried to get for ourselves is to try to live without terror, but we never threaten another nation with annihilation. Iran openly, explicitly and publicly threatens to wipe Israel off the map. Can you say that this is the same level, when they [Iran] are aspiring to have nuclear weapons, as America, France, Israel, Russia?"

Olmert's statements drew fire from politicians across the political spectrum. MK Yuval Steinitz (Likud) responded to Olmert's statement by calling for the prime minister to resign. Meretz-Yahad chairman Yossi Beilin called Olmert's remarks "irresponsible to the point of recklessness."

The Prime Minister's Office said fumbled English was the cause of what it referred to as a misunderstanding regarding what Olmert meant. [...]

(Hat Tip: Israel Matzav)

Tags: Israel, Olmert, nukes