美媒:朝鮮一艘潛艇下落不明或已沉沒

A North Korean submarine is missing and presumed sunk, according to reports in the US media. The vessel was operating off the North Korean coast for several days when it disappeared, a paper with close links to the US military says.

根據美國媒體的一則報道，朝鮮的一艘潛艇下落不明，或已沉沒。而一篇和美國軍方有密切關聯的文章指出，這艘潛艇消失時已經在朝鮮海岸執行任務數日。

The accident comes at a time of heightened tension in the region as South Korea and the US continue their largest-ever military exercise. North Korea has issued another threat of war over the drill. It said it was prepared to launch a pre-emptive strike in response to any sign that an invasion was being prepared.

這起事故發生之時正值該地區局勢緊張之際，韓國和美國正進行他們有史以來最大型的聯合軍事演習。與此同時，朝鮮也對該軍事演習發出了戰爭威脅。朝鮮方面表示，一旦發現任何入侵跡象，他們會隨時準備進行先發制人的報復打擊。

According to the US Naval Institute journal, officials said the US Navy was tracking the submarine when it suddenly disappeared. It says the North Korean military operates a fleet of about 70 submarines ranging in sizes.

根據美國海軍學院雜誌報道，政府官員表示，美國海軍正在監視這艘潛艇的時候，它就突然消失了。該報道還指出，朝鮮軍隊擁有70艘大小不一的潛艇。

The US military had observed the North Korean navy searching for the missing submarine, CNN reports. BBC Korea correspondent Stephen Evans says North Korea has two submarine bases on the eastern coast, facing Japan, and the submarine was thought to have been operating near these bases.

根據CNN的報道，美軍已對朝鮮海軍進行監視並搜尋失蹤的潛艇。BBC韓國通訊記者史蒂芬·埃文斯表示，朝鮮在東部海岸有兩個朝向日本的潛艇基地，這艘潛艇應該在這些基地附近工作。

If the North Korean submarine has sunk, it is not known if its difficulties were connected to the current stand-off between North and South, our reporter says. Security tensions have increased since the North tested a nuclear device in January.

如果這艘潛艇已沉沒，目前尚無法判斷它的故障是否和現在南北對峙的局面有關。在一月份朝鮮進行核試驗之後，該地區的安全局勢日趨緊張。