Axios

President Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in their meeting at the White House last Monday that he won't show flexibility in the negotiations with France, Germany and the U.K. on amending the Iran nuclear deal, two senior Israeli officials told me.

• The officials say Trump told Netanyahu that until now the three European powers only proposed "cosmetic changes" that he doesn't find satisfactory. Trump said he demands "significant changes" in the Iran deal itself and not simply the addition of a supplemental agreement between the U.S. and the European countries, according to the officials.
• The bottom line: Trump stressed that if his demands are not met, the U.S. will withdraw from the deal.

Prime Minister Netanyahu briefed the Israeli cabinet today on his visit to the U.S. and his meeting with President Trump at the White House last Monday. According to two officials who attend the cabinet meeting, Netanyahu told the ministers:

"There is no concrete U.S. peace plan on the table at the moment. I am not saying there couldn't be one in the future, but right now there is none."

China's National People's Congress overwhelmingly passed a constitutional amendment to eliminate presidential term limits, paving the way for President Xi Jinping to stay in power after his second term ends in 2023. The vote was as follows, per the AFP's Joanna Chiu: 2958 in favor, 2 against, 3 abstentions, 1 invalid vote.

Why it matters, according to Axios contributor Bill Bishop: Xi is working to obliterate any boundaries between party and state and to reinsert the Communist Party of China (CPC) into all aspects of China's economy and society — all while ensuring he's the unchallenged embodiment of the CPC. The end result will be Xi's complete dominion over all parts of Chinese government and society.

President Trump has been having conversations with foreign leaders about his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un announced last Thursday.

Why it matters: Axios' Bill Bishop,reported on Friday that China saw this as "a step in the right direction," and will be happy about lowered tensions in the region.

• But remember: Last year, Japanese Prime Minster Abe called the idea of diplomacy and dialogue with North Korea a "dead end."

There are 85% fewer nuclear warheads in the world today than there were during the peak of the Cold War, but proliferation continues to be a threat with newer, younger powers like North Korea adding weapons to their arsenals.

A look at where things stand...

President Trump spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping about his planned meeting with North Korea.

Why it matters: Trump has wanted China's help all along in denuclearizing North Korea. He's gone back and forth on how he feels about their assistance in this, but now he's praising China.

News that President Trump has accepted an invitation for the first meeting between a U.S. president and a North Korean leader has provoked a range of reactions, from optimism that North Korea might actually curb its nuclear weapons program to concern that such a meeting will only legitimize its brutal regime. For those working to keep the U.S. in the Iran nuclear deal, however, a Kim-Trump encounter — assuming it comes off — would be encouraging.

The proposed summit meeting between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un holds great promise but will require careful preparation if it is to secure a lasting solution to the North Korean nuclear threat.

The background: South Korean officials teed up the talks by persuading Kim Jong-un to meet the United States’ conditions for negotiations: denuclearization as the declared goal, suspension of nuclear and missile tests during talks and acceptance that economic sanctions and U.S.–South Korea military exercises will continue.