VOA慢速英语--美国与古巴签署合作协议

AS IT IS 2016-02-22 US, Cuba Sign Deals on Flights and Factory 美国与古巴签署合作协议

After restoring diplomatic relations, the United States and Cuba are building stronger economic links.

President Barack Obama and Cuban President Raul Castro restored diplomatic ties between the two countries in late 2014. They reopened embassies in Havana and Washington. Now the two countries are working to improve business ties.

The U.S. still has a trade ban, or embargo¹, against Cuba. But President Obama has been making more and more exceptions to the embargo.

This week, the U.S. and Cuba have made two important trade agreements.

Airline Deal

The first agreement relates to commercial flights. Regular commercial flights between the U.S. and Cuba ended 53 years ago. In recent years, charter flights have made it possible for a growing number of Americans to visit Cuba. But these flights are expensive and inconvenient² to book. Another option is for U.S. citizens to fly to Cuba through other countries, like Mexico or Canada.

Several U.S. airlines say they plan to add flights to Cuba. Cuban airlines will still have to get their own licenses³ from U.S. authorities.

Under the airline agreement, U.S. visitors would still have to meet one of the 12 qualifying reasons to go to Cuba. For example, an American would have to travel for business, religious, family or educational purposes. However, the difference between legal travel and illegal tourism is not so clear these days.

Last year, about 160,000 Americans made the short trip to Cuba. The island nation is located 145 kilometers off the southeastern U.S. state of Florida. Florida is home to thousands of Cuban-born immigrants who left after Fidel Castro took control in 1959.

The agreement calls for 20 flights a day to the Cuban capital. That number is in addition to the current 10 to 15 charter flights that already connect the two countries. Additional flights connecting the U.S. to nine other Cuban cities could start later this year.

Anthony Foxx is the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. "Today is a historic day in the relationship between Cuba and the U.S. It represents a critically important milestone⁴ in the U.S. effort to engage with Cuba,” he said.

Factory Deal

The airline deal comes a day after the U.S. approved the construction of an American factory on the island. The factory will produce farm tractors.

The Cleber company plans to hire Cuban workers to assemble as many as 1,000 small tractors a year. The tractors will be sold to private farmers in Cuba.

Cuban officials have agreed to the $5 million to $10 million project. It will be located in an economic zone near Havana.

It is the first major American business investment in the communist nation since 1959. In the early 1960s, Cuba’s communist government took over U.S. private property in Cuba. The owners did not receive payment.

American business partners Horace Clemmons and Saul Berenthal own the Cleber company. They plan to open the factory a year from now.

"Everybody wants to go to Cuba to sell something and that's not what we're trying to do," Clemmons said. "We're looking at the problem and how do we help Cuba solve the problems that they consider are the most important problems for them to solve. It's our belief that in the long run we both win if we do things that are beneficial to both countries."

In a dramatic development, the White House announced yesterday that President Obama will visit Cuba in March. He will be the first U.S. president to visit the island nation in almost 90 years.

Words in This Story

embargo - n. a government order that limits trade in some way

inconvenient - adj. causing trouble or problems : not convenient

milestone - n. an important point in the progress or development of something

assemble - v. to connect or put together the parts of (something, such as a toy or machine)

restoring - v. re-establishing

commercial - adj. concerned with profit or earning money

charter - adj. employed for temporary use

expensive - adj. costly⁵

option - n. possibility

located - v. putting in a place; finding the place or position of something

engage - v. to get and keep someone's attention or interest

construction - n. building

hire - v. to employ; to offer a job to

zone - n. area

beneficial - adj. producing good or helpful effects

1 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

2 inconvenient   

adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的

参考例句：

• You have come at a very inconvenient time.你来得最不适时。
• Will it be inconvenient for him to attend that meeting?他参加那次会议会不方便吗？

3 licenses   

n.执照( license的名词复数 )v.批准，许可，颁发执照( license的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Drivers have ten days' grace to renew their licenses. 驾驶员更换执照有10天的宽限期。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Jewish firms couldn't get import or export licenses or raw materials. 犹太人的企业得不到进出口许可证或原料。 来自辞典例句

4 milestone   

n.里程碑；划时代的事件

参考例句：

• The film proved to be a milestone in the history of cinema.事实证明这部影片是电影史上的一个里程碑。
• I think this is a very important milestone in the relations between our two countries.我认为这是我们两国关系中一个十分重要的里程碑。

5 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。