VOA慢速英语2017--希拉里批评特朗普对朝鲜的推文

Clinton Criticizes Trump¹'s North Korea Tweets, But Not Policies

Former United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized President Donald Trump this week on her visit to South Korea.

Clinton, a former U.S. presidential candidate, said she disapproved² of Trump’s angry words about North Korea.

“There is no reason for us to be bellicose³ and aggressive,” she said in a speech to the World Knowledge Forum⁴ in Seoul.

Clinton expressed concern about the president’s description of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as “little rocket man.” She also criticized Trump’s threats to answer a North Korea provocation⁵ with “fire and fury.”

Clinton said that threats to start a war are dangerous. She noted⁶ that a conflict with North Korea could endanger millions of people if a diplomatic solution is not found.

She also said that starting fights with Kim Jong Un “puts a smile on his face” and gives him the attention he wants.

Recently, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson defended Trump’s public words and comments on the Twitter messaging service. Tillerson said they help to “create action forcing events” to move diplomacy⁷ forward.

While Clinton disagreed with Trump’s words, she seemed to support his administration’s efforts to pressure North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons program.

She agreed that North Korean plans to develop a nuclear-armed ballistic missile that can reach the U.S. mainland represent a serious threat to the United States.

But the former secretary of state did not suggest other ways to prevent North Korean testing, and offered no ideas to start talks. She did not say anything about the Russian and Chinese plan to suspend the North Korean nuclear program if the U.S. and South Korea end military exercises.

Instead she said that other countries, including China, should increase economic pressure on North Korea. She also said the U.S. and its allies need to have strong military defenses.

Clinton also was critical of Chinese actions against South Korean businesses operating in China. The actions came after the United States deployed⁸ an anti-missile system in South Korea.

Clinton said the actions of the United States and its allies should react with “proportional” force to North Korean actions against their interests. Trump has said the United States would “totally destroy North Korea” if attacked.

Any preventative military action directed at North Korea’s nuclear or missile test areas could start a war. Some leaders and observers say economic pressure alone will not make the North Korean leadership give up its nuclear activities.

Gary Samore is with the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He believes Americans must accept the idea that North Korea will have nuclear arms. He thinks it is no longer realistic to believe the situation can be reversed. Samore worked as an arms control expert in the administration of former U.S. President Barack Obama.

Clinton also said the action of the United States must be calm and predictable to keep peace in Asia. Trump’s methods, she believes, have been dangerous and damaging.

She said U.S. allies have expressed concerns about whether they can depend on the United States. They note Trump’s comments about unfair trade and criticism of allies for failing to provide enough financial support for U.S. military forces.

President Trump to set to make his first official visit to Asia in early next month. He will visit Japan, South Korea and China before going to attend trade and security meetings in Vietnam and the Philippines.

The South Korean presidential office said that it expects the U.S. president to talk about relations between the countries and North Korea’s activities. The office said it also expects Trump to explain his policy for the Korean peninsula and Northeast Asia.

Words in This Story

bellicose - adj. having or showing a tendency to argue or fight

fury - n. violent anger

proportional – adj. having a number or amount that is directly related to

reverse - v. to move to an opposite direction

peninsula - n. a piece of land that is almost entirely surrounded by water and is attached to a larger land area

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 disapproved   

v.不赞成( disapprove的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• My parents disapproved of my marriage. 我父母不赞成我的婚事。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She disapproved of her son's indiscriminate television viewing. 她不赞成儿子不加选择地收看电视。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 bellicose   

adj.好战的；好争吵的

参考例句：

• He expressed alarm about the government's increasingly bellicose statements.他对政府越来越具挑衅性的声明表示担忧。
• Some irresponsible politicians made a bellicose remarks.一些不负责任的政客说出一些好战的话语。

4 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

5 provocation   

n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因

参考例句：

• He's got a fiery temper and flares up at the slightest provocation.他是火爆性子，一点就着。
• They did not react to this provocation.他们对这一挑衅未作反应。

6 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。

7 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。

8 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。