VOA标准英语10月-US in Deliberate Study of North Korean Nuclear Po

The State Department says the Bush administration is engaged in a careful study of North Korea's latest position on the six-party nuclear talks, as conveyed to a senior U.S. envoy¹ late last week. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department another top U.S. diplomat² is still in the region consulting other parties to the talks.
　

Christopher Hill (file photo)

U.S. officials are refusing to comment on the substance of what Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill learned on a visit to Pyongyang that ended last Friday.

But they do say the Hill mission has triggered a high-level review of the North Korean position that included a White House discussion Tuesday between President Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

The Chinese-sponsored six-party talks, aimed at getting Pyongyang to scrap³ its nuclear program, have been deadlocked⁴ over North Korea's failure to submit a verification plan for the declaration of its nuclear holdings it made in June.

Pyongyang says the United States reneged on a pledge to remove it from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, but U.S. officials say de-listing is dependent on a verification regime.

Hill met several North Korean officials, including Foreign Minister Pak Ui Chun and a senior army general in a visit spanning three days.

A South Korean newspaper considered pro-Pyongyang said earlier this week North Korea gave Hill a new proposal along with an ultimatum⁵ to walk away from the talks if it is not accepted.

At a news briefing Wednesday, State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said he was not ready to provide any details but reiterated⁷ Hill's depiction⁸ of his visit as useful.

"We will give you our full assessment⁹ of what Chris heard and the results of his discussion as we saw it," he said. "I think you heard him, as well as the secretary, characterize the discussions as useful. We will see if, in fact, in the end they are productive in moving the process forward."

McCormack said Secretary Rice discussed the state of the talks by telephone with South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan, and that senior U.S. diplomat Sung Kim - Hill's deputy - is due back in Washington on Thursday, after consultations¹⁰ with parties in the region.

A senior official who spoke⁶ to reporters in Washington said the administration is being deliberate, thoughtful, and conscientious¹¹ in its internal discussion of the talks.

Asked if the negotiations¹² are in a do-or-die situation, the same official said the six-party talks will remain a useful mechanism¹³ regardless of whether they move forward right now.

North Korea announced last month it was taking steps to restore its partially¹⁴ disabled Yongbyon nuclear complex because of the negotiating impasse¹⁵.

Spokesman McCormack said Pyongyang continues to move in the wrong direction with its activity at Yongbyon. He also said North Korea's reported test-firing of two short-range missiles into the Yellow Sea on Tuesday was neither advisable nor helpful in managing regional tensions.

But he said it was not a technical violation¹⁶ of a 2006 U.N. Security Council resolution demanding an end to North Korea's long-range ballistic-missile program.

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 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

3 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

4 deadlocked   

陷入僵局的；僵持不下的

参考例句：

• The plan deadlocked over the funds. 这个计划由于经费问题而搁浅了。
• The meeting deadlocked over the wage issue. 会议因工资问题而停顿下来。

5 ultimatum   

n.最后通牒

参考例句：

• This time the proposal was couched as an ultimatum.这一次该提议是以最后通牒的形式提出来的。
• The cabinet met today to discuss how to respond to the ultimatum.内阁今天开会商量如何应对这道最后通牒。

6 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

7 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

8 depiction   

n.描述

参考例句：

• Double rhythms, resounding through the lyric depiction and connecting with each other, indicate the thespian place of mankind and the cognition of the writer to this thespian place. 这双重旋律互为表里，表明了人类的某种悲剧性处境以及作家对这种悲剧性处境的感受和认识。
• A realistic depiction of scenes from everyday domestic life. 日常家居生活的写实画。

9 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

10 consultations   

n.磋商（会议）( consultation的名词复数 )；商讨会；协商会；查找

参考例句：

• Consultations can be arranged at other times by appointment. 磋商可以通过预约安排在其他时间。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Consultations are under way. 正在进行磋商。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 conscientious   

adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的

参考例句：

• He is a conscientious man and knows his job.他很认真负责，也很懂行。
• He is very conscientious in the performance of his duties.他非常认真地履行职责。

12 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。

13 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

14 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

15 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

16 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。