2007年VOA标准英语-Macau Bank Transfers North Korean Funds

By Kurt Achin
Seoul
14 June 2007

A Chinese official in Macau confirms North Korean funds have been transferred out of a bank there, en route to Pyongyang.  The transfer removes a major obstacle in getting Pyongyang to fulfill¹ its promise to begin dismantling² its nuclear programs.  As VOA's Kurt Achin reports from Seoul, the banking³ breakthrough coincides with a South Korean announcement of emergency food assistance for the North.

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A man talks on a mobile phone in front of the headquarters of Banco Delta Asia in Macau, March 2007 file photo

Macau Secretary of Finance and Economy, Francis Tam, says that most of the North Korean money at the heart of a protracted⁵ banking dispute had been transferred out of a bank in the former Portuguese⁶ colony.

Tam says Macau's Banco Delta Asia remitted⁷ more than $20 million according to the instructions of a North Korean client. 

Tam did not reveal the precise path of the funds.  South Korean and Japanese media report the funds would be processed through the U.S. Federal Reserve and the central bank of Russia to a North Korean account in a Russian bank.

About $25 million in North Korean funds were frozen at Macau's Banco Delta Asia, after the United States Treasury⁸ said in 2005 the bank was involved in illegal activities, such as money laundering⁹.  Although the United States removed its objection to returning the money to the North, no bank had been willing to handle the transfer for fear of jeopardizing¹⁰ relations with the U.S. banking system.

North Korea has blamed the transfer delay for its refusal to meet a deadline for shutting down its main nuclear-production facility.  The mid-April deadline was the first phase in a multi-national agreement made with North Korea in February in Beijing aimed at ending the North's nuclear weapons capabilities¹¹.

In Seoul, Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung announced South Korea would send more than 30,000 tons of emergency corn, wheat, and beans to North Korea via the U.N. World Food Program.

Lee says the action is appropriate given North Korea's situation, and the South's role as a responsible member of international society.

World Food Program officials say the economically isolated¹² North faces some of its most severe food shortages since the mid-1990s, when it suffered widespread famine.

South Korea said it has delayed delivery a much larger shipment of rice until Pyongyang lives up to its February agreement promises.

Christopher Hill (file photo)

More details about the state of that agreement may emerge Friday, when the chief U.S. nuclear negotiator, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, arrives in Mongolia.  Hill is also due to make stops in Beijing, Seoul, and Tokyo.

It remains¹³ to be seen whether resolving the bank issue will be enough to persuade North Korea to take action on its nuclear program.  Experts say that will depend on whether Pyongyang feels it has the full access to the international banking system, which it feels it deserves.

1 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

2 dismantling   

（枪支）分解

参考例句：

• The new government set about dismantling their predecessors' legislation. 新政府正着手废除其前任所制定的法律。
• The dismantling of a nuclear reprocessing plant caused a leak of radioactivity yesterday. 昨天拆除核后处理工厂引起了放射物泄漏。

3 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。

4 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。

5 protracted   

adj.拖延的；延长的v.拖延“protract”的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The war was protracted for four years. 战争拖延了四年。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We won victory through protracted struggle. 经过长期的斗争，我们取得了胜利。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 Portuguese   

n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语

参考例句：

• They styled their house in the Portuguese manner.他们仿照葡萄牙的风格设计自己的房子。
• Her family is Portuguese in origin.她的家族是葡萄牙血统。

7 remitted   

v.免除（债务），宽恕( remit的过去式和过去分词 )；使某事缓和；寄回，传送

参考例句：

• She has had part of her sentence remitted. 她被免去部分刑期。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The fever has remitted. 退烧了。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

8 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。

9 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》

10 jeopardizing   

危及，损害( jeopardize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Plans may also become inefficient in the attainment of objectives by jeopardizing group satisfactions. 用危及群体利益方法去达到目标的计划，也是无效率的。
• That boosted government revenues in the short term, but is now jeopardizing them. Morales将天然气工业，电信业和部分采矿业收归国有的举措吓跑了投资者们。

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 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

13 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。