PARAGRAPH, WORDS AND MEANING

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PARAGRAPH, WORDS AND MEANING

PARAGRAPH OF THE DAY –

Reconciling objectives –

Mr. Kim’s objectives are clear — securing regime legitimacy, regime security and sanctions relief. A summit with Mr. Trump provides legitimacy as long as it begins a dialogue process leading towards diplomatic recognition. In 1992, despite North Korean reservations, China recognised South Korea and today it is one of the South’s largest partners and a major investment source. How South Korea and the U.S. deal with the move towards recognition will demand political creativity.

Having achieved a certain threshold in its nuclear and missile capabilities, North Korea can afford a pause in testing in return for sanctions relief but ‘denuclearisation’ will only happen at the end of a long-drawn process which will involve discussions regarding the U.S. nuclear umbrella for South Korea, the presence of 23,500 American troops and converting the 1953 armistice into a peace treaty which will guarantee regime security.

South Korea would like to ensure that it has a veto over U.S. decisions regarding North Korea and gaining operational control over its own military forces, both of which will require protracted negotiations. Meanwhile, Mr. Moon will do his utmost to maintain credibility in Washington and Pyongyang to keep his ‘sunshine policy’ on track. In Europe, the two Germanys recognised each other in 1972 (the U.S. recognised East Germany in 1974) as part of Willy Brandt’s ‘ostpolitik’, long before German unification was achieved in 1990.

North Korea’s aggressive testing provided justification for the deployment of the THAAD missile defence system aggravating Chinese concerns. China would prefer lowering tensions though it is in no hurry to see Korean unification.

The big unknown is Mr. Trump’s idea of what is an acceptable ‘deal’. Will a process towards eventual denuclearisation tempt him or will he reject it as ‘fake news’ and revert to relying on sanctions and military pressure as some of his advisers are inclined to? Major compromises will be needed for reconciling interests of all the key players for the high stakes summitry on the Korean peninsula to succeed.

WORDS AND MEANING –

Threshold
Meaning: A point of entry or beginning.
Example: “She was on the threshold of a dazzling career”
Synonyms: Start, Starting point, Beginning
Antonyms: End

Armistice
Meaning: An agreement made by opposing sides in a war to stop fighting for a certain time; a truce.
Example: “The Italian government signed an armistice with the Allies”
Synonyms: Truce, Ceasefire
Antonyms: Declaration of war, Hostilities

Veto
Meaning: Exercise a veto against (a decision or proposal).
Example: “The president vetoed the bill”
Synonyms: Reject, Turn down
Antonyms: Approve, Authorize

Protracted
Meaning: Lasting for a long time or longer than expected or usual.
Example: “A protracted and bitter dispute”

Deployment
Meaning: The action of bringing resources into effective action.
Example: “The rapid deployment of high-speed cable Internet services to consumers”

Aggravating
Meaning: Make (a problem, injury, or offence) worse or more serious.
Example: “Military action would only aggravate the situation”

Concerns
Meaning: A cause of anxiety or worry.
Example: “Public awareness of Aboriginal concerns”
Synonyms: Affairs, Issue

Tempt
Meaning: Entice or try to entice (someone) to do something that they find attractive but know to be wrong or unwise.
Example: “There’ll always be someone tempted by the rich pickings of poaching”
Synonyms: Entice, Persuade
Antonyms: Discourage, Deter

Revert
Meaning: Return to (a previous state, practice, topic, etc.).
Example: “He reverted to his native language”
Synonyms: Return, Go back

Inclined
Meaning: Be favourably disposed towards or willing to do something.
Example: “He was inclined to accept the offer”
Synonyms: Disposed, Minded
Antonyms: Disinclined

Reconciling
Meaning: Make or show to be compatible.
Example: “The agreement had to be reconciled with the city’s new international relations policy”
Synonyms: Make compatible, Harmonize