VOA常速英语2008年-US Negotiator Reports Some Progress in N. Korea

By Stephanie Ho
Beijing
09 April 2008

The chief U.S. negotiator in six-nation talks on the North Korean nuclear crisis says talks with his North Korean counterpart in Singapore were good and may yield progress. VOA's Stephanie Ho reports from Beijing.

Ambassador Chris Hill spoke¹ to journalists in Beijing, after a day of meetings with his North Korean counterpart Kim Kye-gwan in Singapore.

"I would say these are good discussions, that I think allowed us to make some progress, as we try to get through what has turned out to be this difficult second phase," he said.

The main sticking point is disagreement over a detailed² declaration of North Korea's nuclear programs, which it was to have provided before an end of 2007 deadline.

Pyongyang says it has already provided the declaration. Washington says it has not yet received what it calls a full and correct accounting³.

Hill was optimistic about his talks with the representative from North Korea, which he referred to by its official initials, DPRK, for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

"We are talking about a declaration that has several elements," said Hill. "The key ones will be the amount of plutonium that the DPRK declares. But we have been able to have very good discussions with some of the other key factors that has allowed us to go forward."

Hill said any agreements between Washington and Pyongyang also must be vetted⁴ by the other four nations in the six-party grouping on the North Korean nuclear issue: China, South Korea, Japan and Russia.

Hill met separately in Beijing with his Chinese, South Korean and Japanese counterparts.

He said although he has nothing concrete to announce this trip, he hinted more information will be forthcoming in the near future, after he consults with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Washington.

1 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。

2 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

3 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

4 vetted   

v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的过去式和过去分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• The recruits were thoroughly vetted before they were allowed into the secret service. 情报机关招募的新成员要经过严格的审查。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All staff are vetted for links with extremist groups before being employed. 所有职员录用前均须审查是否与极端分子团体有关。 来自辞典例句