澳洲新闻 (ABC新闻快递) 2012-10-18

 Australia's long campiagn to win a seat on the United Security Council is finally reaching its climax¹. Foreign minister Bob Carr is in New York the moment to rally last minute support, voting starts in the early hours of tomorrow morning.

 

The prime minister has wrapped up her visit to India after talks with her counterpart Manmohan Singh. They've agreed to start negotiations² on nuclear safeguard agreements, paving the wave for uranium sales to India. They've also agreed to increase defense³ ties and to make it easier for Indian students to study and get jobs at Australia.

 

The former prime minister Kevin Rudd has called on politicians to move on from personal attacks and focus instead on bread and butter issues. Mr.Rudd says voters are hungry for policy based debate, like the economy and jobs.

 

More than 700 Melbourne students are being told their debt-ridden school is to close. Stunned⁴ parents attended a crisis meeting at Acacia College in Mernda last night. The Uniting Church School is less than 3 years old. It's the second private school to go bankrupt in Melbourne this year.

 

And disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong has stepped down as chairman of his cancer charity Livestrong. He says he want to distance it from the doping allegations made against him. Amstrong's also been dumped overnight by Nike. He continues to deny any wrongdoing.

1 climax   

n.顶点；高潮；v.(使)达到顶点

参考例句：

• The fifth scene was the climax of the play.第五场是全剧的高潮。
• His quarrel with his father brought matters to a climax.他与他父亲的争吵使得事态发展到了顶点。

2 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

3 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。

4 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。