核安全峰会聚焦朝鲜核威胁

AS IT IS 2016-04-01 Security Summit Focuses on N. Korea, Terror Threat 核安全峰会聚焦朝鲜核威胁

U.S. President Barack Obama opened his final nuclear security summit in Washington on Thursday, expressing concerns over North Korea's nuclear weapons development and the possibility of dirty bombs from terrorists.

Ahead of the summit, Obama met with South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to discuss the North Korean nuclear threat in the region.

He said, "One of the topics now most on our minds is the issue of North Korea and we are united in our efforts to deter¹ and defend against North Korean provocations³"

North Korea nuclear threat

On Thursday, The Washington Post published an opinion article from President Obama. He wrote, “The international community must remain united in the face of North Korea’s continued provocations, including its recent nuclear test and missile launches. The additional sanctions recently imposed on Pyongyang by the United Nations Security Council show that violations⁴ have consequences.”

The U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution earlier this month to impose tough new sanctions on North Korea. The sanctions are meant to punish North Korea for its recent nuclear and long-range missile tests.

The resolution will need China’s cooperation since 90 percent of North Korean trade goes through China. The U.S. has been asking China to use its influence to limit North Korea’s nuclear activities.

Rose Gottemoeller is an Under-Secretary of State. She said on Wednesday that the cooperation between the U.S. and China has been "very, very good."

"China joins with us in a very strong and intense focus on ensuring good, solid implementation⁵ of the U.N. Security Council resolution, which, as many of you know, places strong constraints⁶ on North Korea's ability to continue to conduct commerce across its borders, whether by sea, air or land," said Gottemoeller.

The U.S. and South Korea have also been discussing the deployment⁷ of a missile defense⁸ system, called THAAD. It stands for Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense.

The missile system is to protect South Korea from the North’s nuclear threat. China has opposed the deployment since it would also give the U.S. radar⁹ coverage¹⁰ over Chinese territory.

U.S.-China relations

U.S.-China relations, however, are complicated with maritime¹¹ disputes in the South China Sea.

China has launched major construction projects in the South China Sea for the past two years. It has claimed sovereignty over a large part of the sea. China has built new artificial islands, airport runways and buildings, ignoring claims from Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.

Recently, China has deployed¹² a radar system and an advanced surface-to-air missile system on Woody Island. The island is part of the Paracel Islands, also claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam.

While the U.S. does not claim any territory in the South China Sea, it has been sending warships¹³ through the disputed water near the Spratly and Paracel islands.

China has called U.S. operations in the South China Sea “provocative behavior.” But both countries have avoided any escalation¹⁴ of tensions.

Terror threat

Leaders at the summit are especially concerned about the security of nuclear materials and facilities in countries such as Pakistan. On Easter Sunday, a terrorist attack in Lahore killed more than 70 people.

The Brussels terrorist attacks on March 22 showed how dangerous terrorist groups like the Islamic State have become. After the attacks, Belgium has put armed guards at its nuclear facilities.

Sharon Squassoni is an expert with the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She said while progress has been made to secure nuclear materials, “there is still material out there and the material that we’re talking about is highly enriched uranium.”

The U.S. says the world has 2,000 metric tons of highly enriched uranium and separated plutonium in civilian¹⁵ and military programs.

Ben Rhodes is the White House Deputy National Security Adviser¹⁶. He said, “We know that terrorist organizations have the desire to get access to these raw materials and their desire to have a nuclear device.”

Words in This Story

provocation² - n. an action or occurrence that causes someone to become angry or to do something

consequence - n. something that happens as a result of a particular action or condition

implementation - n. the action of beginning to do or use something

1 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

2 provocation   

n.激怒，刺激，挑拨，挑衅的事物，激怒的原因

参考例句：

• He's got a fiery temper and flares up at the slightest provocation.他是火爆性子，一点就着。
• They did not react to this provocation.他们对这一挑衅未作反应。

3 provocations   

n.挑衅( provocation的名词复数 )；激怒；刺激；愤怒的原因

参考例句：

• We cannot ignore such provocations. 对于这种挑衅，我们不能置之不理。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• They must immediately cease all their provocations. 他们必须停止一切挑衅。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

5 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

6 constraints   

强制( constraint的名词复数 )； 限制； 约束

参考例句：

• Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

10 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

11 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

12 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

13 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

14 escalation   

n.扩大，增加

参考例句：

• The threat of nuclear escalation remains. 核升级的威胁仍旧存在。 来自辞典例句
• Escalation is thus an aspect of deterrence and of crisis management. 因此逐步升级是威慑和危机处理的一个方面。 来自辞典例句

15 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

16 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。