蓬佩奥结束访朝会谈，美朝说法迥然不同

The path ahead for talks with North Korea appeared uncertain after a weekend visit by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo ended with Pyongyang accusing the U.S. of “gangster-like tactics” and increasing the “risk of war,” but saying it retained confidence in President Donald Trump to reach an agreement on denuclearization.

美国国务卿蓬佩奥(Mike Pompeo)周末结束对朝鲜的访问，朝方指责美国采用“流氓般的策略”并提高了“战争风险”，未来美朝会谈之路似乎变得前途未卜。不过，朝鲜表示，其对与美国总统特朗普(Donald Trump)达成一项无核化协议仍抱有信心。

Mr. Pompeo characterized the talks very differently, saying the two sides had “good-faith, productive conversations which will continue in the days and weeks ahead.” Speaking to reporters at a Sunday briefing in Tokyo, he added: “If requests were gangster-like, the world is a gangster.”

然而，蓬佩奥对双方会谈的说法则颇为不同，他表示双方进行了“善意、富有成效的对话，并将在未来几天和几周继续对话”。在周日于东京举行的新闻发布会上，他对记者表示：“如果那些要求是流氓般的要求，那么整个世界都是流氓。”

He said the talks had yielded progress on key matters such as a timeline for denuclearization and concrete steps that North Korea could take to show commitment to the process.

他表示，会谈在无核化时间表及朝鲜为展示其致力于推进无核化而可能采取的具体措施等关键问题上取得了进展。

The divergent accounts demonstrated the difficulty in translating the broad goal of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula that resulted from June’s summit between Mr. Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un into specifics that would be acceptable to both sides. The Trump administration wants Mr. Kim to abandon his nuclear ambitions while Mr. Kim seeks relief from sanctions that have hammered his nation’s economy as well as a de-escalation of what he perceives as the threat to his regime by the U.S. military presence in South Korea.

双方迥然不同的说法表明，将朝鲜半岛无核化的大目标转化为双方都能接受的具体目标并非易事。朝鲜半岛无核化的大目标是由特朗普与朝鲜领导人金正恩(Kim Jong Un) 6月份在新加坡举行峰会时达成的。特朗普政府希望金正恩放弃其核野心，而金正恩寻求解除制裁，这些制裁已经重创朝鲜经济，此外金正恩还希望降低其认为的驻韩美军对朝鲜政权构成的威胁。

Officials previously involved in talks with North Korea said the impasse was a familiar negotiating tactic and that Pyongyang was attempting to take control of the process. In this case, the reversal sent a clear message that North Korea wouldn’t act without significant concessions by the U.S.

之前参与过与朝鲜会谈的美国官员表示，僵局是一种常见的谈判策略，朝鲜政府正试图控制无核化进程。在这种情况下，朝鲜态度的反转释放出了一个明确的信号，即朝鲜不会在美国没有作出重大让步的情况下采取行动。

“The pace of discussions and negotiations are being dictated by North Korea,” said Joseph Yun, a former U.S. special representative for North Korea policy at the State Department, who retired earlier this year.

美国国务院前朝鲜政策特别代表尹汝尚(Joseph Yun)称，磋商和谈判的节奏都是由朝鲜控制。尹汝尚已于今年早些时候退休。

Related issues on the table such as immediately repatriating the remains of U.S. soldiers killed during the Korean War in 1950-1953, destroying a North Korean weapons-producing facility and the speed of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula also became entangled in the dissonance after North Korea characterized the Pompeo meetings as “regrettable.”

在朝鲜表示与蓬佩奥的会谈“令人遗憾”之后，双方讨论的相关问题，比如立即将1950-1953年朝鲜战争中牺牲的美军士兵遗体送还美国、摧毁朝鲜的一处武器生产设施以及朝鲜半岛无核化的速度等问题，也陷入难解状态。

“The U.S. side came up only with its unilateral and gangster-like demand for denuclearization,” the statement said. “All of which run counter to the spirit of the Singapore summit meeting and talks.”

朝鲜发表声明称：“美方只提出了单方面的、流氓式的无核化要求，所有这些都与新加坡峰会及相关会谈的精神相悖。”

It added: “We maintain our trust in President Trump.”

但该声明还称：“我们仍信任特朗普总统。”

Mr. Pompeo said ahead of the trip to North Korea that he aimed to fill in details of the nuclear deal signed in Singapore, such as a timeline and key steps, including when Pyongyang will provide a list of its nuclear assets and other weapons. After the meeting and Pyongyang’s statement, he signaled a hardening stance, saying the U.S. was “maintaining maximum” pressure on North Korea.

蓬佩奥在赴朝鲜前曾表示，他此行目的是完善新加坡峰会所达成核协议的相关细节，如时间表和关键步骤等，其中包括朝鲜政府将于何时提供其核资产和其他武器的清单。在这次会面及朝鲜发布声明后，蓬佩奥释出了立场更趋强硬的信号，称美国将对朝鲜维持最大施压。

Mr. Trump stopped using the phrase “maximum pressure” last month to avoid provoking Mr. Kim and acknowledged that China wasn’t enforcing economic sanctions as strictly as before.

特朗普上个月停止使用“最大施压”这一表述，意在避免激怒金正恩，并承认中国并未像此前那样严格执行对朝经济制裁。

“Sanctions remain in place, and we will continue to enforce them with great vigor,” Mr. Pompeo told reporters on Sunday.

蓬佩奥周日对记者说：“对朝制裁仍然有效，我们将继续大力实施。”

Pyongyang also played down Washington’s recent decision to cancel joint military exercises with South Korea. While the U.S. has advertised this as “a big concession,” it isn’t comparable to the irreversible nuclear plant dismantling carried out by North Korea, it said.

朝鲜政府也淡化了美国不久前取消部分美韩联合军演决定的意义。朝鲜称，尽管美国宣称这是一个“大让步”，但无法与朝鲜实施的不可逆核工厂拆除相提并论。

The lengthy statement issued by Pyongyang on Saturday warned Washington against old methods that raise “cancerous” issues that “amplify distrust and risk of war.” Such an approach could shake North Korea’s “unwavering determination to denuclearize,” it said.

朝鲜在上周六发表的长篇声明中警告美国，沿用以往手段会使局面恶化，造成双方进一步失去互信并推升战争风险。朝鲜在声明中称，美国这种做法可能会动摇朝鲜对弃核的坚定信念。

“This demonstrates the problem of meeting with Kim at the beginning, making a unilateral concession and declaring victory. It reduces U.S. leverage in the negotiation,” said Abraham Denmark, Asia director at Washington-based think tank the Wilson Center. “This is a rejection of U.S. demands for unilateral denuclearization by North Korea, and a clear message that the U.S. will need to give up more to make progress.”

华盛顿智库Wilson Center亚洲事务总监Abraham Denmark认为：“这体现了过早与金正恩会面、单方面作出让步并宣告胜利的弊端。这削弱了美国在谈判过程中的主动权。”他说：“这是朝鲜对美国要求其单方面弃核的拒绝，也是美国必须作出更多让步才能取得进展的明确信号。”

Another potential stumbling block is the repatriation of U.S. soldiers killed during the Korean War.

另一个可能出现的绊脚石，是将朝鲜战争期间阵亡美军的遗体送回美国。

When asked about the remains on Saturday, Mr. Pompeo demurred on a timeline for the repatriation, saying the Defense Department would meet the North Koreans for a discussion about the process on July 12.

在上周六被问及阵亡士兵遗体一事时，蓬佩奥对目前的时间安排表示异议，他称，美国国防部将于7月12日与朝方会面，就此事的安排展开商谈。