克里与哈格尔赴国会作证

 　　克里与哈格尔赴国会作证

       WASHINGTON, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defense¹ Chuck Hagel on Tuesday made the case for a military strike against Syria, insisting inaction would undermine U.S. credibility, and advising lawmakers not to preclude² option of putting boots on the ground under any circumstances.

　　"This is not the time for armchair isolationism ... We have spoken up against unspeakable horror. Now we must stand up and act, " Kerry told a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Syria.

　　Hagel, who testified after Kerry, said the alleged³ use of chemical weapons in Syria represents "grave risks" and "serious threats" to the U.S. national security interests and its allies.

　　"The United States must demonstrate through our actions that the use of chemical weapons is unacceptable," Hagel said, adding that refusing to act would undermine the credibility of other U.S. security commitments, including President Barack Obama's commitment to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

　　"The word of the United States must mean something," said Hagel. "It is vital currency in foreign relations and international and allied⁴ commitments."

　　The secretaries were cautious as to what an authorization⁵ from Congress should entail⁶, as they promised the administration has no intention of participating in Syria's civil war.

　　"President Obama is not asking America to go to war," Kerry said. "He is asking for authorization to degrade and deter⁷ Bashar al-Assad's capacity to use chemical weapons."

　　Kerry said he did not want the resolution on the use of force in Syria to remove the option of putting "boots on the ground," in case an emergency such as to prevent chemical weapons from falling into wrong hands, a scenario⁸ representing a clear danger to the United States and its allies.

　　"I don't want to take off the table an option that might or might not be available to the president of the United States to secure our country," he said in answer to a question.

　　"In the event Syria imploded⁹, for instance, or in the event there was a threat of a chemical weapons cache falling into the hands of al-Nusra or someone else, and it was clearly in the interests of our allies and all of us -- the British, the French and others -- to prevent those weapons of mass destruction (from) falling into the hands of the worst elements," said Kerry.

　　Al-Nusra is reported to be an al-Qaida affiliated¹⁰ group that operates in Syria.

　　Despite the warning, Kerry tried to assure lawmakers that Obama has no intention of sending troops to fight Syria's civil war.

　　"Whatever prohibition¹¹ clarifies it to Congress or the American people, there will be no boots on the ground with respect to the civil war," said Kerry, in response to Senator Bob Corker's question.

　　Echoing Kerry, Hagel said the military objectives in Syria would be "to hold the Assad regime accountable, degrade its ability to carry out these kinds of attacks and deter the regime from further use of chemical weapons."

　　Hagel said the Defense Department has developed military options to achieve these objectives and positioned U.S. assets throughout the region to successfully execute this mission.

　　"We believe we can achieve them with a military action that would be limited in duration and scope," said Hagel, noting U.S. forces will be ready to act whenever the president gives the order.

　　Hagel underscored that the military force would not be used to resolve the underlying¹² conflict in Syria -- an issue he said must be settled through a political solution by the Syrian people themselves.

　　He noted¹³ that Kerry is leading international efforts to help the parties move toward a negotiated transition, and expressed a commitment to "doing more to assist the Syrian opposition¹⁴."

　　Protesters who opposed the military strike have interrupted Kerry's remarks at the hearing.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 preclude   

vt.阻止，排除，防止；妨碍

参考例句：

• We try to preclude any possibility of misunderstanding.我们努力排除任何误解的可能性。
• My present finances preclude the possibility of buying a car.按我目前的财务状况我是不可能买车的。

3 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

4 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

5 authorization   

n.授权，委任状

参考例句：

• Anglers are required to obtain prior authorization from the park keeper.垂钓者必须事先得到公园管理者的许可。
• You cannot take a day off without authorization.未经批准你不得休假。

6 entail   

vt.使承担，使成为必要，需要

参考例句：

• Such a decision would entail a huge political risk.这样的决定势必带来巨大的政治风险。
• This job would entail your learning how to use a computer.这工作将需要你学会怎样用计算机。

7 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

8 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

9 imploded   

v.（使）向心聚爆( implode的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The economies of Brazil and Russia imploded in 1998. 巴西与俄罗斯的经济在1998年宣告破裂。 来自互联网
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

10 affiliated   

adj. 附属的, 有关连的

参考例句：

• The hospital is affiliated with the local university. 这家医院附属于当地大学。
• All affiliated members can vote. 所有隶属成员都有投票权。

11 prohibition   

n.禁止；禁令，禁律

参考例句：

• The prohibition against drunken driving will save many lives.禁止酒后开车将会减少许多死亡事故。
• They voted in favour of the prohibition of smoking in public areas.他们投票赞成禁止在公共场所吸烟。

12 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

13 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

14 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。