美国、德国应对叙利亚难民潮

AS IT IS 2015-09-22 US, Germany Deal with the Wave of Syrian Refugees 美国、德国应对叙利亚难民潮

The global migration¹ crisis has put pressure on Europe and other countries to deal with huge numbers of refugees safely and fairly.

On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said the U.S. will increase the number of refugees it would accept for resettlement. At least 85,000 refugees would be accepted from October 1 of this year to September 30, 2016. The number includes a minimum of 10,000 Syrians.

Secretary Kerry spoke² in Berlin while meeting with the German Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier. He said the United States will increase the number of refugees it resettles over the next two years. He said the number accepted will increase by 30,000, to 100,000 in 2017. Mr. Kerry noted³ that security concerns have slowed down the process.

"One of the reasons it’s difficult is that, post-9/11, we have new laws and new requirements with respect to security background checks and vetting⁴, so it takes longer than one would like, and we cannot cut corners with respect to those security requirements.” 

However, Mr. Kerry said the humanitarian⁵ effort would continue and seek support from the government and the public.

“But, this step that I am announcing today, I believe, is in keeping with the best tradition of America as a land of second chances and a beacon⁶ of hope, and it will be accompanied by additional financial contributions to the humanitarian effort not only from our government, but from the American people. And, that will become more specific in the next days."

Last week, more than 20 former U.S. officials urged President Barak Obama to accept 100,000 Syrian refugees in 2016. They pointed⁷ to past efforts that aided tens of thousands of Cuban and Vietnamese refugees to enter the U.S.

Mr. Kerry said Congress has not made enough money available to hire the people necessary to process so many additional people.

While in Berlin, Mr. Kerry added that both he and German Foreign Minister Steinmeier had determined⁸ to attack the root cause of the crisis. He repeated that he thinks there is no military solution to the conflict in Syria. And Mr. Kerry said he and his counterpart were in agreement that military support, given to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, from Russia and other countries will draw more extremists into the conflict.

Many asylum⁹ seekers want to settle in German

The migration crisis has put much pressure on Germany. It has offered to take more Syrian refugees than any other country. About 1,800 refugees are entering Germany each day from the Austrian border. Last Sunday, though, that border became more restricted.

Hundreds of foreigners have been arriving at the main train station in Munich. Local officials say they are pleased with the aid they are giving the refugees.

Christoph Hillenbrand is head of the government in Upper Bavaria.

“During 14 days we’ve got about 70,000 refugees coming and arriving here in Munich. To give them shelter within hours, to give them medical care, it’s an extreme task, and I think we did it quite well.”

But as Germany becomes more multicultural¹⁰, some Germans say they are concerned about the new visitors. They worry about unemployment, and that the new-arrivals do not speak German. Some politicians say national guilt¹¹ is driving the country’s current acceptance of so many refugees. They say Germany is seeking to make amends¹² for its part in World War II.

However, not all of Europe wants to or is able to welcome refugees in the same way. Chancellor¹³ Angela Merkel has called on other European Union countries to do their share to accept the refugees and migrants.

European leaders are to meet Wednesday in Brussels to discuss how to deal with the migration crisis. EU President Donald Tusk¹⁴ also is calling on EU leaders to increase donations to the World Food Program to support the 11 million people in Syria and the region.

Words in This Story

minimum – n. the lowest number that is possible or allowed

vetting – adj. related to a careful, often critical examination of someone or something

contributions – n. something that is given to help people or a cause

multicultural – adj. relating to or including many different cultures

1 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 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。

4 vetting   

n.数据检查[核对，核实]v.审查（某人过去的记录、资格等）( vet的现在分词 )；调查；检查；诊疗

参考例句：

• Scripts had to be submitted to Ministry of Information officials for vetting. 必须把脚本提交给信息部官员审查。 来自互联网
• Their purpose in clicking deeper into a site is one of vetting. 他们深入点击网站的目的是一种诊疗。 来自互联网

5 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

6 beacon   

n.烽火，（警告用的）闪火灯，灯塔

参考例句：

• The blink of beacon could be seen for miles.灯塔的光亮在数英里之外都能看见。
• The only light over the deep black sea was the blink shone from the beacon.黑黢黢的海面上唯一的光明就只有灯塔上闪现的亮光了。

7 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

8 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

9 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

10 multicultural   

adj.融合多种文化的，多种文化的

参考例句：

• Children growing up in a multicultural society.在多元文化社会中长大的孩子们。
• The school has been attempting to bring a multicultural perspective to its curriculum.这所学校已经在尝试将一种多元文化视角引入其课程。

11 guilt   

n.犯罪；内疚；过失，罪责

参考例句：

• She tried to cover up her guilt by lying.她企图用谎言掩饰自己的罪行。
• Don't lay a guilt trip on your child about schoolwork.别因为功课责备孩子而使他觉得很内疚。

12 amends   

n. 赔偿

参考例句：

• He made amends for his rudeness by giving her some flowers. 他送给她一些花，为他自己的鲁莽赔罪。
• This country refuses stubbornly to make amends for its past war crimes. 该国顽固地拒绝为其过去的战争罪行赔罪。

13 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

14 tusk   

n.獠牙，长牙，象牙

参考例句：

• The wild boar had its tusk sunk deeply into a tree and howled desperately.野猪的獠牙陷在了树里，绝望地嗥叫着。
• A huge tusk decorated the wall of his study.他书房的墙上装饰着一支巨大的象牙。