VOA标准英语2013--North Korean Cargo Ship Seizure Under Scrutiny

 

North Korean Cargo¹ Ship Seizure² Under Scrutiny³

PENTAGON — It was a bizarre discovery: Customs officials find containers loaded with Soviet-era weapon parts hidden under bags of sugar on a North Korean-flagged freighter trying to pass through the Panama Canal.

In a state television broadcast, Cuba announced it owns the parts, which Havana says include obsolete⁴ anti-aircraft missiles, radar⁵ and warplane components⁶ that were going to North Korea for repair.

But one big question remains⁷. Why would Cuba bother sending seemingly useless items to North Korea for repair?

"All we know is basically we have a North Korean ship with a lot of raw sugar, obsolete anti-aircraft missiles and radar equipment, and some spare aircraft engines bound for North Korea," said Tim Brown, a Senior Fellow at GlobalSecurity.org.  "And we don't know whether the North Koreans are going to repair it or if it was going to be for sale, barter⁸ or what."

Although it could be weeks or months before it is known exactly what the cargo is, Panamanian Security Minister Jose Raul Mulino says has roused the interest of U.S. officials and international agencies.

"The United States has confirmed they will be sending an entire team, and the foreign ministry⁹ informed me that a visit of the United Nations experts has been scheduled in Panama for August the 5th to verify the weapons," he said.

Beyond their shared ideological¹⁰ adversity to the United States, Pyongyang and Havana have no history — at least none that is public — of any significant military cooperation.

"You have two ailing¹¹ Stalinist regimes, the only two that are basically left in the world, and the only ones able to communicate with each other and deal with each other doing what would normally be considered just a nonsensical deal," said Brown.

It is because the case appears to make so little sense that intelligence analysts¹² are working to learn more.

One possible explantion for the shipment that is being evaluated: whether North Korea is building a new relationship halfway¹³ around the world with Cuba. North Korea's isolation¹⁴ has been growing as traditional ally China raises pressure on Pyongyang.

"It's still to be determined¹⁵ what the Cubans were trying to get out of this, what the North Koreans were getting out of this," said Brown. "Why they would go to these lengths and risk this to achieve such very, very little benefit? If anything, it shows the desperation of the North Koreans."

U.S. officials have been cautious in their response, saying little about the seizure.

The United States considers Cuba an enemy government, but not an existential threat. The Obama administration has been taking steps to improve relations that have been frozen for more than a half century, and Cuba wants the U.S. economic embargo¹⁶ lifted.

The revelation of the illegal arms shipment and findings of further investigations¹⁷ may determine whether efforts to improve relations will go forward.

1 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

2 seizure   

n.没收；占有；抵押

参考例句：

• The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
• The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。

3 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

4 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

5 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

6 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

7 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。

8 barter   

n.物物交换，以货易货，实物交易

参考例句：

• Chickens,goats and rabbits were offered for barter at the bazaar.在集市上，鸡、山羊和兔子被摆出来作物物交换之用。
• They have arranged food imports on a barter basis.他们以易货贸易的方式安排食品进口。

9 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

10 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

11 ailing   

v.生病

参考例句：

• They discussed the problems ailing the steel industry. 他们讨论了困扰钢铁工业的问题。
• She looked after her ailing father. 她照顾有病的父亲。

12 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

13 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

14 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

15 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。

16 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

17 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。