2007年VOA标准英语-US, N. Korea Resolve Dispute Over Frozen Funds

By Luis Ramirez
Beijing
19 March 2007

The government of Macau says it will release $25 million of North Korean funds that had been frozen in a Macau bank. VOA's Luis Ramirez reports from Beijing that earlier U.S. officials announced they resolved their dispute with North Korea over the funds at the start of a new round of nuclear disarmament talks.

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Negotiators from North and South Korea, Japan, Russia, China and the U.S. begin a new round of six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear program, in Beijing, 19 Mar 2007

Diplomats² hailed the resolution of the financial dispute. They said it cleared the way for delegates from six nations to move ahead with the process of getting North Korea to dismantle³ its nuclear-weapons program.

A U.S. Treasury⁴ official in charge of money laundering⁵ and terrorist financing cases said $25 million in frozen funds are to be deposited in a bank in Beijing, after the North Koreans promised to use the money for humanitarian⁶ and educational purposes.

The Monetary⁷ Authority of Macau issued a statement saying it would release the funds.

The Chief U.S. negotiator in the six-party talks, Christopher Hill, said now is the time to move on with the negotiations⁸.

"We feel this matter has been resolved and now we can move to the problem, of which there are many," he said.

The Macau government froze the funds during an 18-month U.S. investigation⁹ of Banco Delta¹⁰ Asia. Washington says the small Macau bank facilitated North Korean laundering of money obtained from counterfeiting¹¹ of currency and cigarettes, drug trafficking and other illegal activities.

After the funds were frozen, North Korea boycotted¹² the nuclear talks with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the United States for more than a year. Pyongyang returned to the negotiating table in December, and a preliminary disarmament agreement was reached February 13th.

In the accord, North Korea agreed to shut down and seal its main nuclear reactor¹³ and plutonium factory by mid-April in exchange for energy aid and diplomatic concessions¹⁴. Later steps are to lead to nuclear disarmament.

At the end of the first day of talks, U.S. envoy¹⁵ Christopher Hill said that it is time to move on to the core issue of denuclearization.

"The real issue will be to start organizing that second phase so that we can get to full declaration of North Korea's nuclear programs and the issue of disabling their programs," added Hill. "I really think it is a complex thing we are trying to do, but I think we are pretty much on schedule as of today."

Pyongyang had said it would not stop the reactor until the frozen funds were released. The U.S. Treasury announced the end of its investigation of the Macau bank last week, but had insisted any decision on the funds rested with authorities in Macau, a special administrative¹⁶ region of China.

1 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

2 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 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。

4 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

5 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》

6 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

7 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

8 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

9 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

10 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

11 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

12 boycotted   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Athletes from several countries boycotted the Olympic Games. 有好几国的运动员抵制奥林匹克运动会。
• The opposition party earlier boycotted the Diet agenda, demanding Miyaji's resignation. 反对党曾杯葛国会议程，要宫路下台。

13 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

14 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

15 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。

16 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。