2006年VOA标准英语-Annan Wants Iranian and Korean Nuclear 'Cr

By Steve Herman
Tokyo
18 May 2006
 

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan in Tokyo  
  
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan has expressed frustration¹ at the lack of progress in resolving the Iranian and North Korean nuclear disputes. Mr. Annan calls the disputes a "crisis," and says resolving them is an urgent matter.

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U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Thursday singled out the Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs as situations that "continue to cause acute international concern." He called for Iran and North Korea to return to international negotiations² to resolve the issues.

In a speech at Tokyo University, and later at a news conference, Mr. Annan said Iran needs to engage in face-to-face negotiations with the international community, and North Korea must return to stalled six-nation talks - calling those approaches the only way forward.

"It is serious, it is a crisis in the sense that we need to work very actively³ and be creative in finding a solution at the table," he said.

Japan, along with the United States, South Korea, China and Russia, has called on North Korea to give up nuclear weapons it says it already possesses. Iran insists its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only, but the United States and the European Union suspect that Tehran intends to build nuclear weapons as well.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Wednesday rejected the latest EU proposal for resolving the dispute. Despite repeated rejections⁴ from Tehran, Mr. Annan says a resolution from the U.N. Security Council condemning⁵ Iran is not imminent⁶.

"I do not think the Council is going to pass a resolution this week or next," he said. "There are discussions that are going on amongst the countries. And everyone is conscious that this is urgent, that this is important, and has to be handled carefully."

North Korea has engaged in on-again, off-again talks on its nuclear programs. Last September, Pyongyang agreed in principle to dismantle⁷ those programs in exchange for international aid and security guarantees, but there have been no follow-up sessions to discuss implementation⁸ of that agreement.

Mr. Annan also addressed the issue of Japan's frayed⁹ relations with its two neighbors, China and South Korea. Both have repeatedly protested visits by Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to a controversial Shinto shrine¹⁰ to Japan's war dead, where convicted war criminals are among those honored.

The U.N. leader met with Mr. Koizumi and other government officials Wednesday in Tokyo. He says those meetings and discussions with government officials in South Korea gave him the impression that Tokyo and Seoul are making important gestures to resolve their differences.

Mr. Annan says similar moves are required by Beijing and Tokyo if their dispute is to be settled.

"There have to be gestures, bold, generous gestures, to settle issues and move forward," he said.

When pressed for details on specifically what Beijing and Tokyo should do, he said the parties "know each other very well," and also know what needs to be done to improve relations.

1 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

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 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

4 rejections   

拒绝( rejection的名词复数 )； 摒弃； 剔除物； 排斥

参考例句：

• Most writers endure a number of rejections before being published. 大部分作家经历无数次的退稿才守得云开，作品得到发表。
• Supervise workers and monitors production quality to minimize rejections. 管理工人，监控生产质量，减少退货。

5 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

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 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。

9 frayed   

adj.磨损的v.（使布、绳等）磨损，磨破( fray的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His shirt was frayed. 他的衬衫穿破了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The argument frayed their nerves. 争辩使他们不快。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

10 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。