2007年VOA标准英语-Inter-Korean Cooperation Grows

By Kurt Achin
Seoul, South Korea
04 June 2007
 

From trains to tourism, from industry to sports, cooperation between the two Koreas is picking up momentum¹ again, less than a year after the North tested its first nuclear weapon.  VOA's Kurt Achin reports from Seoul.

A train passes the gate for the Demilitarized Zone as South Koreans wave unification flags near Dorasan Station near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) of Panmunjom, in Paju, north of Seoul, South Korea, 17 May 2007

As trains rolled across the inter-Korean border in May for the first time in 57 years, South Korea celebrated² with fanfare³.

The test of the railway is a symbol of a resurgence⁴ in inter-Korean cooperation. The two countries have never formally ended their 1950s war. Although relations have improved since 2000, ties cooled abruptly⁵ last October, when the North tested its first nuclear weapon.

But now, the South is pushing ahead with its policy of economic engagement with the impoverished⁶ North. Seoul is expanding an industrial park in the North Korean city of Kaesong.  Thousands of North Koreans work there in South Korean-owned factories.  Bookings are picking up for a South Korean-operated tourism zone at the North's Kumgang Mountain. And North Korean officials recently visited Seoul for minister-level talks.

Peter Beck, Northeast Asia director for the International Crisis Group, says all of this is made possible by Pyongyang's promise to dismantle⁷ its nuclear weapon programs. "Really, the February 13th agreement was viewed as a green light for Seoul to proceed full speed ahead with North-South cooperation activities."

North Korea missed an April deadline to start shutting its main nuclear facility.  Pyongyang blames the delay on a problem moving its money from a Macau bank.

Beck, however, says South Korean aid may undermine the North's willingness to cooperate on the nuclear issue. "The North is getting hundreds of millions of dollars of assistance, and it takes a very powerful reason away from the North for complying with the obligations it's committed itself to in the six-party talks."

But most experts say South Korea's engagement policy is about more than eliminating North Korea's nuclear weapons.

South Korean Prime Minister Han Duck-soo recently said his government wants to bring about slow change in the Stalinist North - to help it strengthen its economy and open up to the world. Seoul wants to avoid an economic or political collapse⁸ in the North. "Without the opening of the North Korean economy, and without committing themselves to more reliance on markets, the fundamental solution of the problems will not be possible," said the prime minister.

Ryoo Kihl-jae is a dean at Seoul's Kyungnam University Graduate School of North Korean Studies.  He said, "In the long-run, you need various tactics to help North Korea become part of international society. They will need a partner like South Korea to come out to international society."

Ryoo, however, says Seoul will not wait indefinitely for Pyongyang to end its nuclear programs. South Korea has delayed an aid shipment of rice to the North until it takes the first step of the February agreement. Still, for the foreseeable future, most experts say any South Korean government – progressive or conservative – has no other option than to engage the North. 

1 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

2 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

3 fanfare   

n.喇叭；号角之声；v.热闹地宣布

参考例句：

• The product was launched amid much fanfare worldwide.这个产品在世界各地隆重推出。
• A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King.嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。

4 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

5 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

6 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

8 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。