VOA标准英语2008年-Envoys Cite Progress in Talks on North Korea's

Negotiators seeking to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue are making progress on how to verify Pyongyang's own account of its nuclear activities. Stephanie Ho reports from Beijing.
　
S. Korean envoy¹ Kim Sook speaks to reporters in Beijing, 11 Jul 2008

After two days of negotiations² in Beijing, the envoys³ from six countries have reached what the Chinese side calls a "principled consensus⁴" on verifying North Korea's declaration of its nuclear activities.

The declaration was presented to China at the end of June, one day before Pyongyang destroyed the cooling tower at its main Yongbyon nuclear facility.

Washington has called for the document to include a complete and accurate accounting⁵ of all of North Korea's activities.

There are many outstanding verification issues, according to Robert Gallucci, who was a top U.S. North Korea negotiator during the Clinton administration.

Gallucci, who is now dean of Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, says one priority is to find out whether North Korea has as much plutonium as it says it does.

"The world would be interested in being able to confirm or verify that the plutonium amounts are correct and begin to look at what circumstances or arrangements there might be for disposition⁶ of separated plutonium," he said.

He says another major verification question is the question of highly-enriched uranium, a program Pyongyang is accused of pursuing in secret.

And, yet another issue involves questions regarding North Korea's nuclear assistance to Syria. All this, he says, touches on how the international community will monitor Pyongyang's nuclear activity in the future.

"In other words, how can we assure ourselves that there won't be more exports of nuclear material or equipment, there will not be a secret uranium enrichment facility somewhere, or a secret reactor⁷?" he asked. "What sort of access will be granted, and to whom? Is the IAEA to be the executive agency, the International Atomic Energy Agency, or is there to be some sort of ad hoc regime?"

In return for declaring and disabling its nuclear facilities, North Korea is to receive aid and diplomatic incentives⁸. Among those incentives are U.S. moves to drop Pyongyang from the Trading with the Enemy Act and to remove it from the state sponsors of terror list.

The nations involved in the talks are the United States, North Korea, China, South Korea, Japan and Russia. The current meeting came after a nine-month stalemate.

Chinese spokesman Qin Gang says the six parties are hoping to issue some sort of joint⁹ document at the end of this round of talks, which is expected Saturday.

　

 

1 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

2 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。

3 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。

4 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

5 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。

6 disposition   

n.性情，性格；意向，倾向；排列，部署

参考例句：

• He has made a good disposition of his property.他已对财产作了妥善处理。
• He has a cheerful disposition.他性情开朗。

7 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

8 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

9 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。