2006年VOA标准英语-Japan Issues Arrest Warrants for North Kor

By Steve Herman
Tokyo
23 February 2006

In the latest move in an escalating¹ dispute between Japan and North Korea, police in Tokyo have obtained arrest warrants for two North Koreans who allegedly kidnapped four Japanese citizens in the 1970s.

Japanese officials say the two North Koreans are to be placed on the Interpol wanted list following the arrest warrants issued in Japan.

Japan and North Korea have no diplomatic relations, but have held talks recently to discuss establishing ties. But Tokyo insists that resolving the fate of Japanese abducted³ by North Korea's agents during the Cold War is among issues that have to be resolved before Japan will agree to formal ties.

Japanese officials say in the future they will specifically demand North Korea hand over the two men named in the arrest warrants, Sin Guan Su and Choe Sung Chol.

Sin is an honored figure in North Korea, partly because he remained loyal to the communist regime during 15 years in South Korean custody⁴. He had been arrested there on spying charges.

The intelligence agent is accused of kidnapping a Japanese couple in 1978, for which a Japanese warrant had previously⁵ been issued for his arrest.

Choe is alleged² to have abducted another Japanese couple, also in Japan, the same year.

The two couples - both of whom married in North Korea - were returned to Japan in 2002 following a summit in Pyongyang between Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. The couples now live in Japan with their children.

Foreign Ministry⁶ spokesman Tomohiko Taniguchi says previous requests by Tokyo to turn over the men have been ignored by Pyongyang, and the warrants are meant to demonstrate Japan's resolve to bring the alleged abductors to justice.

"I am not so sure if there is any need to be polite in this case, involving kidnapping, involving the outright⁷ denial of very much apparent cases, and so we are not threatening in any way North Koreans, but we are actually urging them, repeatedly, to send back those people to Japan," he said.

Japan is also reiterating⁸ its demand that Pyongyang hand over Kimihiro Uomoto. He has been under North Korea's protection since 1970 when he was part of a Japanese Red Army group that hijacked⁹ a jetliner to North Korea. Japanese police also want to question him about the abduction of a Japanese woman that North Korea has admitted kidnapping.

Japanese government officials have been expressing increasing frustration¹⁰ with North Korea for its failure to give more information to Tokyo about the abductions. But Taniguchi says the timing¹¹ is not a response to the stalemate in the talks between Japan and North Korea.

"There has been a precedent¹² in which three people were identified and three arrest warrants were issued, so, no matter how it seems that these two events are correlated with one another, the one is based on investigators¹³' calendar, and the other, diplomatic calendar, has very nothing to do with the former," said Taniguchi.

The North Korean government has admitted kidnapping 13 Japanese nationals to help train spies, and says it has accounted for all the abductees. Pyongyang has released five individuals and says the other eight are dead.

1 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句

2 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

3 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

4 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

5 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

7 outright   

adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的

参考例句：

• If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。
• You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。

8 reiterating   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He keeps reiterating his innocence. 他一再申明他无罪。
• The Chinese government also sent a note to the British government, reiterating its position. 中国政府同时将此立场照会英国政府。

9 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

10 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。

11 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

12 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。

13 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》