2007年VOA标准英语-US, North Korea Meet on Nuclear Issue, Normaliz

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
01 September 2007

The United States and North Korea are holding bilateral¹ talks in an ongoing² process aimed at disabling North Korea's nuclear facilities. This is the latest in a series of working group sessions preparing the ground work for all-important six-party talks that will take place later this month. The members include the two Koreas, China, Russia, the United States and Japan. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva where the bilateral talks are taking place.

Vehicles enter the U.S. mission in Geneva, Switzerland, prior to the bilateral talks between the U.S. and North Korea, 1 Sept 2007

The talks are going on behind closed doors at the U.S. mission here in Geneva. Before they began, both parties expressed good will and their hopes for a productive outcome.

Upon his arrival in Geneva, the chief North Korean negotiator said he hopes the meeting will be positive. His American counterpart told journalists he is hopeful progress will be made toward scrapping³ North Korea's nuclear arsenal⁴.

Chief U.S. negotiator, Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill, said the two delegations⁵ will be working on implementing⁶ the February 13 agreement.

That deal, reached by the six parties, obliges Pyongyang to disable its nuclear facilities and declare all of its nuclear program. In exchange, North Korea would receive 950,000 tons of heavy fuel oil or equivalent aid and other economic and political benefits.

In July, North Korea closed its main nuclear facility. Hill said he is optimistic the weekend talks with North Korean officials will help the two sides agree on how to begin declaring and disabling North Korea's nuclear programs.

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Christopher Hill speaks during a press briefing about a bilateral meeting with North Korean envoys in Geneva, Switzerland, 31 Aug. 2007

Hill says the six-party process is important because North Korea's nuclear ambitions are not just a problem for the United States. He says the talks hold out hope for relations between North Korea, called the DPRK, and other countries in the region.

"That involves building relations not only between the DPRK but also between the DPRK and other countries and between some of those other countries. So that is why we are trying to address some of the underlying⁸ causes of tension in the region," he said.

One issue concerns the abduction decades ago of Japanese citizens by North Korea. Hill says the resolution of that problem is on the bilateral agenda.

He says the six parties have created a mechanism⁹ to lessen¹⁰ such tensions and to build confidence among the nations. He says Russia has been working hard to ensure the process will be a success when the six parties meet.

"I hope that at the end we will not only have dealt with the terrible problem of nuclear weapons, but also the problem of making sure that this neighborhood produces not only some of the world's finest products but also Northeast Asia can produce also peace and security," he said.

Hill said he hopes North Korea will declare and disable all of its facilities by the end of the year, and then begin a final phase in 2008, destroying all of its nuclear weapons.

Hill says a successful outcome of the next six-party talks could eventually lead to a peace conference on the Korean peninsula that would result in a genuine peace agreement. This would replace the armistice¹¹ that ended the Korean War in 1953.

He says other benefits could be a resumption of bilateral diplomatic relations and the removal of North Korea from the U.S. State Department's list of states that sponsor terrorism.

1 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

2 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

3 scrapping   

刮，切除坯体余泥

参考例句：

• He was always scrapping at school. 他在学校总打架。
• These two dogs are always scrapping. 这两条狗总是打架。

4 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

5 delegations   

n.代表团( delegation的名词复数 )；委托，委派

参考例句：

• In the past 15 years, China has sent 280 women delegations abroad. 十五年来，中国共派280批妇女代表团出访。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• The Sun Ray decision follows the federal pattern of tolerating broad delegations but insisting on safeguards. “阳光”案的判决仿效联邦容许广泛授权的做法，但又坚持保护措施。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

6 implementing   

v.实现( implement的现在分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• -- Implementing a comprehensive drug control strategy. ――实行综合治理的禁毒战略。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• He was in no hurry about implementing his unshakable principle. 他并不急于实行他那不可动摇的原则。 来自辞典例句

7 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。

8 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

9 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

10 lessen   

vt.减少，减轻；缩小

参考例句：

• Regular exercise can help to lessen the pain.经常运动有助于减轻痛感。
• They've made great effort to lessen the noise of planes.他们尽力减小飞机的噪音。

11 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。