2006年VOA标准英语-US Negotiator: North Korea Talks to End Friday

By Kurt Achin
Beijing
21 December 2006

Washington's chief envoy¹ to multinational² talks on ending North Korea's nuclear weapons program says discussions will continue for one more full day before he returns home. VOA's Kurt Achin reports from Beijing, where the talks are being held, Pyongyang reportedly remains³ intensely focused on financial sanctions issues.

Christopher Hill

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, visibly fatigued⁴ from four days of intense talks, described the latest session as "difficult." He said there had not been as much progress as he had hoped, and added that he intends to leave Beijing for the United States on Saturday.

China, Russia, the United States, South Korea and Japan are meeting in Beijing for a sixth formal time in three years to try to persuade North Korea to live up to its pledges to be nuclear weapons-free, in exchange for financial and diplomatic benefits.

Hill expressed frustration⁵ that North Korea, also called the DPRK, refuses to discuss virtually anything other than U.S. financial measures aimed at North Korean interests.

"I am not here to talk about financial issues," he said. "I am here to talk about getting the DPRK out of the business of weapons of mass destruction."

Last year, Washington charged North Korea with money laundering⁶ and counterfeiting⁷ through a Macau-based bank and froze $24 million in North Korean assets, which resulted in restricting Pyongyang's access to the international banking⁸ system

North Korean and U.S. delegates held side meetings on the financial issue this week, and have tentative plans for further discussions next year.

Hill hinted North Korea was not doing enough to engage with the other six-party nations on matters separate from the financial issue.

"We all did a lot of work - we have done a lot of work in the last few weeks. And we would like to see the DPRK delegation⁹ match that amount of work and show that they are looking at the proposals," he said.

In September of last year, North Korea agreed in principle with the five nations to dismantle¹⁰ its nuclear capabilities¹¹ within the framework of dialogue and cooperation. Hill says since it tested a nuclear weapon in October, it is urgent to arrive at credible¹² steps Pyongyang can take to implement¹³ its promise.

"We are not prepared for a situation where somehow we pretend that they are doing things; they pretend to disarm¹⁴, and we pretend to believe them. This has to be real. It is on the ground, it is tough stuff," he said.

While he did not explicitly¹⁵ warn of more sanctions if there is no progress, he said the United States and its partners would take steps to "protect themselves."

"There is one thing that anyone involved in denuclearization can predict; that as long as they stay in this nuclear business, they are going to have more and more and more financial problems," he said.

Hill declined to say whether the United States is ready to agree for a date for more six-party talks, saying that may become clearer by Friday night.

1 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。

2 multinational   

adj.多国的，多种国籍的；n.多国籍公司，跨国公司

参考例句：

• The firm was taken over by a multinational consulting firm.这家公司被一个跨国咨询公司收购。
• He analyzed the relationship between multinational corporations and under-developed countries.他分析了跨国公司和不发达国家之间的关系。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 fatigued   

adj. 疲乏的

参考例句：

• The exercises fatigued her. 操练使她感到很疲乏。
• The President smiled, with fatigued tolerance for a minor person's naivety. 总统笑了笑，疲惫地表现出对一个下级人员的天真想法的宽容。

5 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

6 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 counterfeiting   

n.伪造v.仿制，造假( counterfeit的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was sent to prison for counterfeiting five-dollar bills. 他因伪造5美元的钞票被捕入狱。 来自辞典例句
• National bureau released securities, certificates with security anti-counterfeiting paper technical standards. 国家质量技术监督局发布了证券、证件用安全性防伪纸张技术标准。 来自互联网

8 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

9 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

10 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

11 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

12 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

13 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

14 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

15 explicitly   

ad.明确地，显然地

参考例句：

• The plan does not explicitly endorse the private ownership of land. 该计划没有明确地支持土地私有制。
• SARA amended section 113 to provide explicitly for a right to contribution. 《最高基金修正与再授权法案》修正了第123条，清楚地规定了分配权。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法