PARAHRAPH, WORDS AND MEANINGS
TOPIC OF THE DAY –
1.Korean thaw –
The summit between the leaders of the two Koreas is perhaps the most significant step in decades towards securing peace on the peninsula. Kim Jong-un on Friday became the first North Korean leader since the 1953 armistice to step on South Korean soil. Not many had foreseen such a rapid turnaround in ties between the two Koreas, given the acrimony and war rhetoric of the recent past. Mr. Kim had stepped up his country’s nuclear weapons programme since assuming power in 2011. Last year, U.S. President Donald Trump and he even exchanged nuclear threats. But it has become evident that Mr. Kim’s primary goal may not be to maintain the North’s nuclear capability or to live in a perpetuallyhostile environment. He has signalled that he is willing to barterthe North’s nuclear capability for economic and security assurances. At their summit, Mr. Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in, whose persistence in breaking the ice was vital to the historic meeting, spared no words in expressing their desire for peace in a “nuclear-free” peninsula. They declared that there would be no more war on the peninsula. There are plans to transform the existing armistice into a peace treaty with the help of the U.S. and China, to formally end the Korean war by year-end.
The significance of the summit notwithstanding, peace is not a given. In the past, two South Korean Presidents had travelled to the North to meet its leader. The 2007 joint declaration after an inter-Korean summit had expressed almost similar goals as in the latest declaration, including on the nuclear issue. Yet relations deteriorated, with the international peace process failing to make any progress and the North going back to its nuclear weapons programme. What is different this time is that the inter-Korean summit is to be followed by a meeting between Mr. Kim and Mr. Trump. Mr. Kim first conveyed the promise of denuclearisation through visiting South Korean officials. And then he travelled to China to discuss the proposal with President Xi Jinping before meeting Mr. Moon. He announced a freeze on further nuclear tests and said North Korea’s main test site would be shut down, all aimed to show his seriousness of purpose. Mr. Trump has welcomed the Panmunjom summit and said that he expects to meet Mr. Kim within four weeks. Despite his promises, Mr. Kim is unlikely to give up his nuclear weapons unless he gets credible guarantees from the U.S., China and other countries. He is likely to also press the U.S. to withdraw its nuclear umbrella from the South. But it is quite extraordinary to think that Mr. Trump and Mr. Kim may actually now get down to discussing, face-to-face, steps towards denuclearising the Korean peninsula.
WORDS/MEANINGS –
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
Turnaround
Meaning: An abrupt or unexpected change, especially one that results in a more favourable situation.
Example: “It was a remarkable turnaround in his fortunes”
Acrimony
Meaning: Bitterness or ill feeling.
Example: “The AGM dissolved into acrimony”
Synonyms: Bitterness, Rancour
Antonyms: Goodwill
Rhetoric
Meaning: The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially the exploitation of figures of speech and other compositional techniques.
Example: “He is using a common figure of rhetoric, hyperbole”
Synonyms: Oratory, Eloquence
Stepped up
Meaning: To take action when there is a need or opportunity for it.
Example: “Investors have to step up and assume more responsibility for their assets”
Threats
Meaning: A statement of an intention to inflict pain, injury, damage, or other hostile action on someone in retribution for something done or not done.
Example:”Members of her family have received death threats”
Synonyms: Warning, Ultimatum
Perpetually
Meaning: In a way that never ends or changes; constantly.
Example: “Perpetually hungry teenage boys”
Hostile
Meaning: Showing or feeling opposition or dislike; unfriendly.
Example:”A hostile audience”
Synonyms:Antagonistic, Aggressive
Antonyms: Friendly, Mild
Barter
Meaning: Exchange (goods or services) for other goods or services without using money.
Example: “He often bartered a meal for drawings”
Synonyms: Trade, swap
Assurances
Meaning: A positive declaration intended to give confidence; a promise.
Example: “He gave an assurance that work would begin on Monday”
Synonyms: Promise, Pledge
Persistence
Meaning: The fact of continuing in an opinion or course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.
Example: “Cardiff’s persistence was rewarded with a try”
Synonyms: Perseverance, Tenacity
Vital
Meaning:Absolutely necessary; essential.
Example:”Secrecy is of vital importance”
Synonyms:Essential, Crucial
Antonyms: Unimportant, Peripheral
Treaty
Meaning: A formally concluded and ratified agreement between states.
Example: “The two Presidents signed a ten-year treaty of solidarity”
Synonyms: Agreement, Settlement
Deteriorated
Meaning: Become progressively worse.
Example:”Relations between the countries had deteriorated sharply”
Synonyms:Worsen, Decline
Antonyms: Improve
Denuclearisation
Meaning: To remove nuclear weapons from a place.
Example: The documents detailing proposals for denuclearizing the region were leaked to the press.
Give up
Meaning: Cease making an effort; admit defeat.
Example: “He wasn’t the kind of man to give up easily”
Credible
Meaning: Able to be believed; convincing.
Example: “Few people found his story credible”
Synonyms: Acceptable, Reliable
Antonyms: Untrustworthy
