2007年VOA标准英语-East Asian Leaders Call for N. Korea to Abandon

By Heda Bayron
Cebu, Philippines
15 January 2007

Leaders of 16 Asia-Pacific countries have pledged to speed up economic integration¹, and have called on North Korea to abandon its nuclear weapons programs. The statements came at the end of the East Asia Summit meeting in the Philippine city of Cebu, where VOA's Heda Bayron has filed this report.

Philippine President Gloria Arroyo² says progress over the past several days among leaders and foreign ministers from Southeast Asia and its Asia-Pacific neighbors has bought the region a step closer to full economic integration.

Gloria Arroyo speaks during press conference in Cebu, 15 Jan. 2007

Mrs. Arroyo says the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN, which held its separate summit meeting here Saturday and Sunday, can play a key role in reaching that goal.

"We can become a dynamo as the hub and core of East Asia immersed in robust³, open trade from within the region and across the oceans," she said.

ASEAN wants to create a common market for its 10 members by 2015, and eventually expand that to include its six major regional trading partners: Japan, China, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand. Such a bloc⁴ would include almost half the world's population, and a fifth of its current world trade.

On Monday, as leaders of all 16 nations gathered in Cebu for the second annual East Asia Summit, the leaders pledged to accelerate regional free trade.

Agreement on a wide range of issues has been reached here over the past week, from trade and investments, to migrant workers' rights, to cooperation on counterterrorism.

North Korea's nuclear ambitions have featured prominently in the talks. Meeting for the first time since North Korea's October nuclear test, Mrs. Arroyo reiterated⁵ the leaders' call for Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear programs.

"We urge North Korea to take concrete and effective steps toward the full implementation⁶ of the Joint⁷ statement of September 19 of 2005," she said.

In that 2005 statement, the North pledged to end its nuclear programs, in exchange for economic and security guarantees from the United States and other countries.

Japan, South Korea and the U.S., along with China and Russia, North Korea's traditional allies, have been trying for the last three years to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear programs.

The last round of negotiations⁸ ended in December with no progress. Pyongyang and Washington are at odds⁹ over financial sanctions imposed by Washington to halt Pyongyang's alleged¹⁰ counterfeiting¹¹ and money laundering¹² activities. The North Koreans want those sanctions lifted as a precondition for any concessions¹³ on the nuclear issue.

On Monday, the Asian leaders also called on Pyongyang for the first time to address the issue of Japanese and South Koreans abducted¹⁴ by North Korean agents over the past several decades.

The leaders agreed to cut dependence¹⁵ on oil and to seek renewable energy supplies, at a time when high oil prices and rapid economic growth raise competition among Asian nations for new energy sources.

1 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

2 arroyo   

n.干涸的河床，小河

参考例句：

• She continued along the path until she came to the arroyo.她沿着小路一直走到小河边。
• They had a picnic by the arroyo.他们在干枯的河床边野餐过。

3 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

4 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

5 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

6 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。

7 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

8 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。

9 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

10 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

11 counterfeiting   

n.伪造v.仿制，造假( counterfeit的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was sent to prison for counterfeiting five-dollar bills. 他因伪造5美元的钞票被捕入狱。 来自辞典例句
• National bureau released securities, certificates with security anti-counterfeiting paper technical standards. 国家质量技术监督局发布了证券、证件用安全性防伪纸张技术标准。 来自互联网

12 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

14 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

15 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。