VOA标准英语2009年-Japan Orders Possible North Korean Rocket

Japan's military is getting ready to shoot down part or all of the rocket North Korea is planning to launch, if it looks like it will land anywhere on Japanese territory. Meanwhile, senior regional envoys¹ are heading to Washington to craft a diplomatic response to the imminent² launch.
　
Japan Maritime³ Self-Defense⁵ Force's warships⁶ are moored⁷ at JMSDF Sasebo Base in Sasebo, Nagasaki Prefecture (state), southwestern Japan, Friday, 27 Mar⁴ 2009

Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada says he has ordered the interception⁸ of any dangerous debris⁹, if anything goes wrong with North Korea's planned rocket launch.

He says any missile or rocket flying over Japan is unacceptable, and adds Japan will take approriate measures with anything that affects the nation's interests.

Hamada's comments follow a meeting of Japan's Security Council Friday, at which senior officials voted to approve the use of missile defense technology to destroy any part of the North Korean rocket that looks like it will land on Japan.

North Korea says it will launch, what it says is a communications satellite, sometime between April 4 and April 8. The trajectory¹⁰ is expected to cross Northern Japanese territory.

South Korea, Japan, and the United States view the planned launch as an unacceptable attempt to advance the North's ballistic missile program. The long-range rocket Pyongyang intends to launch is theoretically capable of delivering a warhead as far as the western United States.

Leaders of all three countries, including Japanese Prime Minister Taro¹¹ Aso, say the launch will violate a United Nations resolution passed after North Korea's 2006 nuclear weapon test.

He says Japan will strongly protest through the United Nations, while also urging North Korea not to carry out the launch.

North Korea says attempts to shoot down its rocket will be an act of war, and that any additional U.N. sanctions resulting from the launch will deal a fatal blow to six-nation talks aimed at ending the North's nuclear weapons programs.

South Korea's delegate to those talks left Friday for Washington for high-level consulations on a diplomatic response to the launch.

1 envoys   

使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份

参考例句：

• the routine tit for tat when countries expel each other's envoys 国家相互驱逐对方使节这种惯常的报复行动
• Marco Polo's travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache. 马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。

2 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

3 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

4 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

5 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

6 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

7 moored   

adj. 系泊的 动词moor的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• 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。
• We shipped (the) oars and moored alongside the bank. 我们收起桨，把船泊在岸边。

8 interception   

n.拦截；截击；截取；截住，截断；窃听

参考例句：

• Aerial photography can provide valuable information on precipitation, evapotraspiration, interception, and runoff. 航空摄影可提供有关降水量、蒸发蒸腾量、入渗和径流量的有价值的资料。
• Light interception and distribution in hedgerow orchards with different alleyway widths is indicated in Fig. 56. 图56显示篱壁果园不同行间宽度的光能截取和分配的情况。

9 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

10 trajectory   

n.弹道，轨道

参考例句：

• It is not difficult to sketch the subsequent trajectory.很容易描绘出它们最终的轨迹。
• The path followed by a projectile is called its trajectory.抛物体所循的路径称为它的轨道。

11 taro   

n.芋，芋头

参考例句：

• Main grain crop has taro,corn,banana to wait.主要粮食作物有芋头、玉米、芭蕉等。
• You celebrate your birthday with taro,red bean and butter.用红豆、芋头和黄油给自己过生日。