2007年VOA标准英语-Former Korean President Predicts Peace on Penin

By Meredith Buel
Washington
18 September 2007

Former South Korean President Kim says he believes the efforts to convince North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons program will be successful and diplomatic ties will eventually be established between the United States and Pyongyang. Mr. Kim made his remarks during a speech in Washington and VOA correspondent Meredith Buel has details.

Mr. Kim told an audience at the National Press Club the six-party talks are gaining momentum¹ and the first phase of an accord reached last February has been successfully implemented².

That disarmament agreement called on North Korea to shutdown its nuclear facilities and give experts from the United States, China and Russia access to the Yongbyon site to examine ways to permanently³ disable the facility.

Mr. Kim was elected president in 1997 and left office in 2003. He won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2000 for his policy of engaging North Korea after holding an unprecedented⁴ summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.

The former South Korean president says diplomacy⁵ to end Pyongyang's nuclear program is working. "I am convinced that the six-party talks will succeed. When I met North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in Pyongyang, he earnestly desired to normalize relations with the United States," he said.

The six-party talks began in 2003. They are sponsored by China and include North and South Korea, Russia, Japan and the United States.

The February accord calls for North Korea to disable and declare all of its nuclear holdings, including weapons, in return for energy aid and diplomatic benefits.

Mr. Kim says the success of the dialog means North Korea no longer has a reason to insist on possession of nuclear arms, and the United States can now accept an appropriate solution to the North Korean nuclear issue. "The U.S. no longer needs to be hesitant about resolving the situation since North Korea announced it would abandon its nuclear ambitions completely and would join in the efforts for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula," he said.

North Korea invaded South Korea in 1950 and an armistice⁶ ended the fighting three years later, but in legal terms the two nations remain at war.

Relations improved considerably⁷ after Mr. Kim's summit, but North Korea has since declared itself a nuclear-weapons state and conducted a nuclear test last October.

Mr. Kim says the February agreement and continuing six-party talks will lead to what he called a glimmer⁸ of peace on the Korean Peninsula. "The formal end to the Korean War will be declared and diplomatic ties between the U.S. and North Korea will be established. In addition, a peace treaty will be signed among related parties," he said.

Mr. Kim was the architect of what became known as the sunshine policy of engaging North Korea.

The former South Korean president says he believes the negotiations⁹ concerning North Korea's nuclear program can be successfully concluded before President Bush leaves office.

1 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

2 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

3 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

4 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

5 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

6 armistice   

n.休战，停战协定

参考例句：

• The two nations signed an armistice.两国签署了停火协议。
• The Italian armistice is nothing but a clumsy trap.意大利的停战不过是一个笨拙的陷阱。

7 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

8 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

9 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。