2006年VOA标准英语-Pentagon: North Korean Missiles Were Not Threat

lieBy Al Pessin
Pentagon
05 July 2006

The Defense¹ Department says it detected all seven North Korean missile launches and determined² quickly that they were not a threat to the United States or its territories. The Department also says the one long-range missile that was launched failed on its own after less than one minute of flight.

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Bryan Whitman 
  
Spokesman Bryan Whitman says the North American Air Defense Command, known as NORAD, was fully³ aware of the North Korean launches, and was able to assess their significance almost immediately.

"Each and every launch was detected, monitored and interceptors were operational during the missile launches that took place," he said. "The commander of NORAD was able to determine rather quickly that the missiles didn't pose a threat to the United States or its territories."

Whitman would not say exactly what 'interceptors' were operational. 

South Korean man reads  Korea Herald⁵ newspaper reporting North Korea's launching of missiles in Seoul, July 5, 2006  
  
The new U.S. missile defense system is partly activated⁶ and has had about a 50 percent success rate in tests. That system, based in Alaska and California, is designed to intercept⁴ long-range missiles like one of those launched by North Korea. Shorter range missiles, which North Korea also launched, would be attacked, if necessary, by shorter-range, regionally based systems.

Whitman says the Defense Department was prepared to respond to the North Korean launches if that had been necessary.

"We have well established procedures for dealing⁷ with missile launches that potentially pose a threat to the United States or its territories," he said. "Those procedures were followed for these activities."

The Pentagon spokesman would not say whether senior officials were involved in those procedures. But he did confirm that the only one of the missiles that might possibly have reached the United States or its territories in the Pacific, failed within a minute after it was launched.
 

Passengers in Seoul subway train watch TV screens broadcasting North Korea's missile test launches  
  
"The Taepodong-2, the missile that had been watched for some time, that we have been talking about for the past couple of weeks, appears to have failed on its own in the early stages of its launch, and also went into the Sea of Japan, along with the rest of the short-to-mid-range missile," he said.

Despite the apparent failure of North Korea's new long-range missile, Whitman says the country's missile program is still a threat.

"North Korea's development, deployment⁸ and proliferation of missiles and missile-related materials, equipment and technology pose a threat to the region and to the world," he said.

The Pentagon spokesman would not say what, if any, military steps the United States is taking or considering in the wake of the North Korean launches. He said the focus will likely shift to diplomatic efforts.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 intercept   

vt.拦截，截住，截击

参考例句：

• His letter was intercepted by the Secret Service.他的信被特工处截获了。
• Gunmen intercepted him on his way to the airport.持枪歹徒在他去机场的路上截击了他。

5 herald   

vt.预示...的来临，预告，宣布，欢迎

参考例句：

• In England, the cuckoo is the herald of spring.在英国杜鹃鸟是报春的使者。
• Dawn is the herald of day.曙光是白昼的先驱。

6 activated   

adj. 激活的 动词activate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The canister is filled with activated charcoal.蒸气回收罐中充满了活性炭。

7 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

8 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。