VOA标准英语2008年-US Expects North Korean Nuclear Declaration Thi

U.S. officials said Monday they expect North Korea to make its long-awaited declaration of its nuclear program this week, probably Thursday. The action would open the way to the next phase of the six-party deal under which Pyongyang is to scrap¹ its nuclear program in return for aid and diplomatic benefits. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.

Bush administration officials say they expect the declaration Thursday based on comments by North Korean officials.

But they're expressing caution, noting that past timetables have slipped, and also stressing that the declaration must be verified if Pyongyang is to reap promised benefits.

North Korea was to have made the declaration of its nuclear possessions and activities at the end of last year, and the delay has stalled implementation² of the six-party accord.

White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said Thursday is a deadline for the declaration cited by North Korea itself, but that if follow-on actions are to be taken the document must be reviewed and considered verifiable.

In a talk with reporters here, State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said the Bush administration is ready, on receipt of the declaration to inform Congress of its intention to remove North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism.
　
State Department Spokesman Tom Casey (file photo)

But Casey noted³ that by U.S. law there is a 45-day waiting period for the decision to be enacted⁴, and during that time verification steps must get underway:

"One thing that's extremely important to us, presuming we get a declaration and that announcement is then made, is that we will use that 45 days as an opportunity to work on the verification process," said Tom Casey. "And certainly there would be consequences in that process, should it be determined⁵ that North Korea is not complying with the verification terms, or has otherwise not provided the kind of declaration that everyone hoped for."

The chief U.S. delegate to the six-party talks, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, is holding consultations⁶ in Beijing and would be ready to join in a meeting of all six delegation⁷ chiefs if the North Korean declaration is indeed submitted.

North Korea has indicated it is ready to demolish⁸ the cooling tower of its Yongbyon nuclear complex as a show of good faith after submitting the declaration.

Spokesman Casey said U.S. officials monitoring the disablement of the Yongbyon reactor⁹ would witness the demolition¹⁰. He said Assistant Secretary Hill has no plans himself to attend the event or to visit Pyongyang this week.

Hill is expected to remain in the region to brief Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who begins a visit to Japan, South Korea and China later this week.

Rice told reporters traveling with her to Germany Monday that if North Korea submits a complete and accurate declaration it would be an important step that would trigger several reciprocal actions including "de-listing" Pyongyang as a terrorism sponsor.

At the same time, Rice told a questioner the United States is not going to "set aside or forget" the issue of Japanese citizens abducted¹¹ by North Korean intelligence agents in the 1970's and 1980's.

Japanese officials have opposed dropping North Korea from the terrorism list, and lifting associated economic sanctions without a resolution of the abduction issue.

Rice in the airborne news conference credited U.S. pressure for a North Korean agreement with Japan last week to reopen investigations¹² of the abduction cases.

She said she recognizes it is a "wounding issue" for Japan, and one which the United States will continue to press North Korea on to make certain it is dealt with.

1 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。

2 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 enacted   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• legislation enacted by parliament 由议会通过的法律
• Outside in the little lobby another scene was begin enacted. 外面的小休息室里又是另一番景象。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

5 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。

6 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》

7 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

8 demolish   

v.拆毁(建筑物等)，推翻(计划、制度等)

参考例句：

• They're going to demolish that old building.他们将拆毁那座旧建筑物。
• He was helping to demolish an underground garage when part of the roof collapsed.他当时正在帮忙拆除一个地下汽车库，屋顶的一部份突然倒塌。

9 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。

10 demolition   

n.破坏,毁坏,毁坏之遗迹

参考例句：

• The church has been threatened with demolition for years. 这座教堂多年来一直面临拆毀的威胁。
• The project required the total demolition of the old bridge. 该项目要求将老桥完全拆毁。

11 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。

12 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。