The Hindu Newspaper Editorial – Daily Vocab List Date 08­03­2017
The Hindu Editorial – Sparks in a tinderbox
Click Here to Read the Hindu Editorial Sparks in a tinderbox
Unless de­escalation becomes a priority for all, the Korean Peninsula (▀ायύीप) will
remain a flashpoint.
North Korea’s provocative (उΟेजक/ढीठ/गु‫הּ‬ाख़) action of launching four missiles into the Sea of Japan a
few hundred kilometres from the Japanese coastline has triggered fears of renewed tension between
nuclear­armed powers. The launch seems timed to test the strategic fortitude (धै य└/सहन­शε♣) and tactical
(सामδरक/काय└नीितक/चातु य└पूण└) capabilities (āमताओं) of new relationships in the broader power balance
that reins (बाग­डोर/िनयं╨ण) in Pyongyang’s (Capital of North Korea) nuclear ambitions. The first test would
be of the strength of bilateral (िύदे शीय) U.S.­Japan ties on the watch of U.S. President Donald Trump and
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong­un had already given these
two leaders a wake­up call when his regime (सरकार) fired (िनकाल िदया/▀·िलत करना) a medium­range
missile last month. Mr. Trump has assured (आ‫ק‬ासन िदया) both Mr. Abe and South Korea’s acting
President, Hwang Kyo­Ahn, of his ironclad (कवचवाला/लोहे के हिथयार बां धे ╟ए) commitment to stand by
them through this crisis (संकट). Yet it is likely that Mr. Kim was, in fact, trying to get a measure of Mr.
Trump, who had tweeted shortly before assuming office in January, “it won’t happen!”, on the North being
close to testing an ICBM. Experts seem to concur (सहमत) that the missiles launched now did not appear to
be of intercontinental range. Yet, the prospect looms of the North miniaturising nuclear warheads
(हिथयार) to the point where even shorter­range weapons could, if they were nuclear­tipped,
pose unprecedented risk to South Korea, Japan and the U.S. military assets(आε‫הּ‬यों/संपिΟ) in the vicinity
(आस­पास).
The continuous belligerence (िववाद) of North Korea is only one side of the story. The other is that the
international community, led by the U.S. and nations within striking distance of the North’s aggression
(चढ़ाई/आ╡ामकता), has hardly managed the conflict (संघष└ /झगड़ा/टकराव) consistently. The commendable
(सराहनीय/▀शं सनीय) effort of the Six Party Talks to invest diplomatic currency in bringing Pyongyang back
to the negotiating table got derailed early on in President Barack Obama’s first term. The cycle of sanctions
(▀ितबं ध) and international isolation fuelling further bravado by the Kim regime then dominated the
denouement, as indeed (वा‫הּ‬व म┼ ) it has since 1992. This time the conflict seems to be following
a distinctly (‫ױמּ‬ ╜प से) more unstable trajectory (▀āेपव╡) as Mr. Trump has authorised the deployment
in South Korea of the first elements of the U.S.’s advanced anti­missile system, the Terminal High Altitude
Area Defence (THAAD), disregarding the possibility that it may be a double­edged (दु धारा) sword. On the
one hand, the presumed (अनुमािनत/पδरकεֽत) retaliatory move of THAAD deployment glosses over the
fact that in the past week the U.S. and South Korea had conducted military drills in the region, war games
that Pyongyang views as overt hostility. On the other, Washington has clearly decided to ignore
the justifiable (Рायोिचत) fears of Beijing and Moscow that THAAD’s nuclear umbrella threatens their
interests in the region too, not North Korea’s alone. Unless de­escalation becomes a priority for all parties
involved, the Korean Peninsula region will remain a flashpoint.
Courtesy: The Hindu
List of Most Important words with Hindi Meaning, Synonyms and
Antonyms from The Hindu Newspaper Editorial Sparks in a tinderbox
1.Provocative (उΟेजक/ढीठ/गु‫הּ‬ाख़)
Synonyms: Annoying, Irritating, Exasperating, Infuriating
Antonyms: pleasing, repressive, suppressive, unexciting
2.Fortitude (धै य└/सहन­शε♣)
Synonyms: Courage, Bravery, Endurance, Resilience, Mettle
Antonyms: apathy, cowardice, fear, irresolution
3.Reins (बाग­डोर/िनयं╨ण)
Synonyms: restraint, control, curb
Antonyms: Release
4.Assure (आ‫הּק‬ करना/भरोसा िदलाना)
Synonyms: Reassure, Convince, Satisfy, Persuade, Guarantee, Promise
Antonyms: discourage, dissuade, distress
5.Crisis (संकट)
Synonyms: Emergency, Disaster, Catastrophe, Calamity, Predicament
Antonyms: agreement, benefit, blessing
6.Vicinity (आस­पास)
Synonyms: environs, neighborhood, proximity
Antonyms: faraway
7.Conflict (संघष└ /झगड़ा/टकराव)
Synonyms: battle, clash, combat, competition
Antonyms: peace, truce, agreement
8.Commendable (सराहनीय/▀शं सनीय)
Synonyms: Admirable, Praiseworthy, Creditable, Laudable, Meritorious
Antonyms: bad, unworthy, wrong