万花筒 2013-04-01&04-04 美国B2隐形轰炸机飞临朝鲜半岛

 Another chess move in the public dual¹ with North Korea.

Overnight,

the U.S. flexing² its muscle and sending stealth bombers³ into the backyard of the mysterious nation.

As tonight,

the North Korean news agency says they are “burning with hatred”

over this latest move. And ABC News Chief Global Affairs Correspondent Martha Raddatz tells us the story.

If North Korea had any doubt that the U.S. would defend its ally South Korea,

this rare show of force should end it.The two massive B2s sought 6500 miles from Missouri to drop dummy⁴ weapons on a bombing range west of South Korea and less than 50 miles from the North Korean border, and then flew back to the U.S.

It was the first time the U.S. military has confirmed the B2 practice mission but the message was clear.

The B2 was capable of dropping 16 nuclear bombss each on a different target.

It can fire under any weather conditions,

penetrating⁵ sophisticated air defences with its rader-evading stealth scan.

“We will unequivocally defend and we are unequivocally commited to that alliance with South Korea.

And we will be prepared if we have to be prepared to deal with any eventuality there.”

Since February when the U.S. and South Korea began gearing up for military exercises,

North Korea steadily⁶ escalated⁷ its threats. A page from its playbook,

only this time those threats have been harder,

including nuclear strikes which they are not yet capable of.

The U.S. says the stealth bombers were not meant to ratchet up the tension with North Korea but that is exactly what has happened.

1 dual   

adj.双的；二重的，二元的

参考例句：

• The people's Republic of China does not recognize dual nationality for any Chinese national.中华人民共和国不承认中国公民具有双重国籍。
• He has dual role as composer and conductor.他兼作曲家及指挥的双重身分。

2 flexing   

n.挠曲，可挠性v.屈曲( flex的现在分词 )；弯曲；（为准备大干而）显示实力；摩拳擦掌

参考例句：

• Flexing particular muscles allows snakes to move in several ways. 可弯曲的特殊的肌肉使蛇可以用几种方式移动。 来自电影对白
• China has become an economic superpower and is flexing its muscles. 中国已经成为了一个经济巨人而且在展示他的肌肉。 来自互联网

3 bombers   

n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟

参考例句：

• Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 dummy   

n.假的东西；(哄婴儿的)橡皮奶头

参考例句：

• The police suspect that the device is not a real bomb but a dummy.警方怀疑那个装置不是真炸弹，只是一个假货。
• The boys played soldier with dummy swords made of wood.男孩们用木头做的假木剑玩打仗游戏。

5 penetrating   

adj.（声音）响亮的，尖锐的adj.（气味）刺激的adj.（思想）敏锐的，有洞察力的

参考例句：

• He had an extraordinarily penetrating gaze. 他的目光有股异乎寻常的洞察力。
• He examined the man with a penetrating gaze. 他以锐利的目光仔细观察了那个人。

6 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

7 escalated   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The fighting escalated into a full-scale war. 这场交战逐步扩大为全面战争。
• The demonstration escalated into a pitched battle with the police. 示威逐步升级，演变成了一场同警察的混战。