韩国：朝鲜可能试射弹道导弹

Seoul believes North Korea is preparing to launch a ballistic missile, posing a possible new threat to stability on the peninsula ahead of South Korea’s presidential election in December.

韩国相信朝鲜正准备发射一枚弹道导弹，此举可能对朝鲜半岛的稳定构成新的威胁。韩国将于12月举行总统选举。

“It’s clear that they’re in preparation for a possible launch, a senior foreign ministry official said, while stressing that the South Korean government could not predict when or whether a missile test would take place.

韩国外交通商部一位高级官员表示：“很明显，他们可能正在准备发射导弹。他同时强调，韩国政府不可能预测出朝鲜究竟何时——以及是否——进行导弹试射。

Last week, Japan’s Asahi newspaper reported that US intelligence had detected possible launch preparations. In April, a North Korean rocket that Pyongyang said would carry a satellite into orbit failed 90 seconds into flight.

日本报纸《朝日资讯》(Asahi)上周报道称，美国情报部门已发现朝鲜准备发射导弹的迹象。今年4月，朝鲜发射了一枚火箭，朝鲜政府曾表示火箭将把一颗卫星送入轨道。但该枚火箭在升空90秒之后便解体坠落了。

On Monday, DigitalGlobe, a satellite imagery provider, released an image showing what it called a “marked increase in activity at a launch site near the Chinese border.

本周一，卫星图像提供商DigitalGlobe公布了一张图片，显示靠近中国边境的一处发射场出现其所称的“活动明显增加。

The South Korean official suggested Pyongyang might take such a provocative step to seek a stronger negotiating position against South Korea’s next president, who will take office in February.

上述韩国官员暗示，朝鲜可能采取此类具有挑衅性的行动，以便在与韩国下任总统打交道时获得更强势的谈判地位。韩国新总统将于明年2月就职。

“At the moment, we don’t have much tools or leverage to prevent them from making further provocations, the official said.

这位官员表示：“目前，我们没有太多工具或手段阻止对方采取进一步的挑衅行动。