万花筒 2010-11-25&11-26 朝韩局势紧张

North Korea is ratcheting up the rhetoric¹ after the military confrontation². It is calling South Korea a puppet group, saying that South Korea had been carrying out war exercises near the island, and that's why it decided³ to respond. It said it had called on South Korea to stop the shelling. And that's when North Korea intervened. It's saying that any more provocation⁴ from South Korea will be met with military muscle, that they will respond with military mightand there will be all-out confrontation if there is more provocation from South Korea. South Korean officials, of course, have been bunkered down themselves, looking at just how they can respond to this, calling for calm, not wanting to provoke the situation, but also saying that they can't respond just with words. Watching on, of course, other parties in the region. China and the United States in talks right now. The U.S. envoy⁵, Stephen Bosworth, has been in the region trying to look at a way , way through, a way forward, with North Korea.
Watching on warily⁶ as well is Japan. It has its own intense relationship with North Korea. North Korea in the past has talked about being able to fire missiles, missiles directly to Tokyo. Now standing⁷ here at the port of Incheon, about 70 kilometers from the island itself. We've seen people being evacuated⁸ who were there when the attack actually took place. They have been coming ashore⁹, many of them elderly, saying they are shocked and they are saddened, one elderly lady saying that she had to leave all of her possessions behind. So, right now, a very tense situation, always volatile¹⁰, it is right now on a knife edge.

1 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

2 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

3 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

4 provocation   

n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因

参考例句：

• He's got a fiery temper and flares up at the slightest provocation.他是火爆性子，一点就着。
• They did not react to this provocation.他们对这一挑衅未作反应。

5 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

6 warily   

adv.留心地

参考例句：

• He looked warily around him,pretending to look after Carrie.他小心地看了一下四周，假装是在照顾嘉莉。
• They were heading warily to a point in the enemy line.他们正小心翼翼地向着敌人封锁线的某一处前进。

7 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

8 evacuated   

撤退者的

参考例句：

• Police evacuated nearby buildings. 警方已将附近大楼的居民疏散。
• The fireman evacuated the guests from the burning hotel. 消防队员把客人们从燃烧着的旅馆中撤出来。

9 ashore   

adv.在(向)岸上，上岸

参考例句：

• The children got ashore before the tide came in.涨潮前，孩子们就上岸了。
• He laid hold of the rope and pulled the boat ashore.他抓住绳子拉船靠岸。

10 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。