VOA标准英语2013--US, China Facing Increasingly Belligerent North Korea

 

US, China Facing Increasingly Belligerent¹ North Korea

With North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un threatening a pre-emptive nuclear strike to stop what Pyongyang says are plans for a U.S. and South Korean attack, Washington is again calling on Beijing to help check North Korean hostility².

"We believe that no country, including China, should conduct “business as usual” with a North Korea that threatens its neighbors. China’s interest in stability on the Korean Peninsula argues for a clear path to ending North Korea’s nuclear program," said U.S. National Security Advisor³ Tom Donilon:

Though China has backed last week's new U.N. sanctions against North Korea, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi says that is not the "fundamental way" to resolve the crisis.

"The only right way to resolve the issue is to take a holistic⁴ approach and resolve the concerns of all parties involved in a comprehensive and balanced manner through dialogue," Jiechi said.

And despite China's support for the sanctions, Cato Institute analyst⁵ Justin Logan says the international community is giving Beijing little incentive⁶ for tougher action.

"There has been very, very little offered I think to China to take what it views as an ambitious and risky⁷ step by really turning the screws on North Korea," Logan said.

Logan says reducing the U.S. military presence in South Korea could help ease Chinese concerns.

"They're very, very concerned about the prospect⁸ of a unified⁹ Korea with American military garrisons¹⁰ on their border. That is a military problem that the Chinese think is important," Logan said.

But North Korea's military poses its own problems for China, says American University professor Pek Koon Heng.

"China needs to deal with North Korea and needs to disengage from North Korea in a way that is more meaningful because otherwise North Korea will become a threat to China as well," Heng said.

Heng says an increasingly unpredictable North Korea is pushing China closer to the United States, despite differences over other issues, such as the South China Sea.

"We're seeing maybe the Chinese decoupling the North Korean engagement with the problems of the South China Sea because they see that their national interest, they see their own security at risk with North Korea doing what it has been doing," Heng said.

U.S. officials say they will not stand by while North Korea seeks to develop a nuclear-armed missile that can target the United States. Instead, the Obama administration says it is encouraging North Korean leaders to choose a better path to help develop their economy and feed their people if they honor their promises and respect international law. 

1 belligerent   

adj.好战的，挑起战争的；n.交战国，交战者

参考例句：

• He had a belligerent aspect.他有种好斗的神色。
• Our government has forbidden exporting the petroleum to the belligerent countries.我们政府已经禁止向交战国输出石油。

2 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。

3 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

4 holistic   

adj.从整体着眼的，全面的

参考例句：

• There is a fundamental ambiguity in the use of word "whole" in recent holistic literature.在近代的整体主义著作中，“整体”这个词的用法极其含混。
• In so far as historicism is technological,its approach is not piecemeal,but "holistic".仅就历史决定论是一种技术而论，它的方法不是渐进的，而是“整体主义的”。

5 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

6 incentive   

n.刺激；动力；鼓励；诱因；动机

参考例句：

• Money is still a major incentive in most occupations.在许多职业中，钱仍是主要的鼓励因素。
• He hasn't much incentive to work hard.他没有努力工作的动机。

7 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。

8 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

9 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

10 garrisons   

守备部队，卫戍部队( garrison的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I've often seen pictures of such animals at the garrisons. 在要塞里，我经常看到这种动物的画片。
• Use a Black Hand to garrisons, and take it for yourself. 用黑手清空驻守得步兵，为自己占一个。