VOA慢速英语2019--北约庆祝成立70周年

NATO Quietly Marks 70th Anniversary

Foreign ministers from countries belonging to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization are gathering¹ in Washington to mark the 70th anniversary of the military alliance.

NATO is one of the oldest common defense² alliances of its kind, and one of the most successful. The group includes Britain, France and Germany, but also has added countries such as Turkey and Greece that are not near the Atlantic Ocean.

NATO was formed to be an alliance of Western nations that would balance the military power of the Soviet³ Union and its allies in Eastern Europe. After the former Soviet Union collapsed⁴ in 1991, some experts questioned what part the alliance would play in international security.

Since that time, NATO members have taken part in conflicts in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. NATO also has expanded to include countries that were once part of the Soviet bloc⁵. Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Poland and Romania were formerly⁶ allied⁷ to the Soviet Union.

Criticisms of NATO

U.S. President Donald Trump⁸ has criticized the group, both as a presidential candidate and after taking office in 2017. Trump has said that many NATO members do not spend enough on defense to meet their commitments fully⁹ under the agreement.

He suggested that NATO may no longer be useful. He once called it “obsolete¹⁰.”

Trump’s criticism of the alliance has concerned European allies.

However, some U.S. officials have also been frustrated¹¹ over European positions on some security issues affecting NATO. For example, Germany has planned an undersea gas pipeline¹² with Russia. In addition, the U.S. is worried about Europeans' apparent lack of concern over security threats presented by China.

And some European members have sharply disagreed with the U.S. on expanding restrictions¹³ on Iran for its nuclear program and activities in the Middle East. They also have criticized the U.S. for withdrawing from a nuclear agreement with Russia – which, the U.S. says, Russia has not observed.

However, most foreign policy experts say NATO is a success.

Mark Simakovsky is with the Atlantic Council, a research group in Washington. He told VOA that NATO “has showcased an ability to adapt to change in the past” and it is dealing¹⁴ with issues like cyber warfare¹⁵ and spending more on defense.

Defense spending

Trump is not the first U.S. leader to call for NATO members to do more to defend their countries. President Barack Obama also pressed allies to spend more on defense. Other presidents have done so as well.

In 2014, NATO members agreed on spending what is equal to two percent of their economies on their militaries each year. Most have never reached that level. NATO’s 2018 report says 7 of its 29 member states reached the two percent spending promise.

Kurt Volker is director of the McCain Institute in Washington. He also served as the U.S. ambassador to NATO. Volker said defense spending shows a country’s commitment to its own security. He said such spending gives other NATO members confidence that the group can help defend that country.

Hans Jundnani is with the British research group Chatham House. He said Europe needs to do more to share the burden of common defense. In 2018, Britain supplied the most among European countries to the defense costs of the alliance.

Recently, a group of eight former British military and intelligence chiefs warned that Britain could drop from being a top military power unless it does more for its defense.

Central European countries continue to support the security guarantee that NATO provides. They note American support of military bases in the Black Sea area, the Baltic States and Poland.

On Monday, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced an agreement to spend $260 million for military storage in Poland.

I’m Mario Ritter Jr.

Words in This Story

bloc –n. a group of countries connected by a treaty or agreement

obsolete –adj. no longer used

adapt –v. to change in order to operate better or to be better able to meet needs

cyber –adj. related to computers and computer networks

confidence –n. the belief that someone has the ability to succeed at something

frustration¹⁶ –n. a feeling of annoyance at not being able to or being prevented from reaching some outcome

1 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

2 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。

3 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

4 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

5 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

6 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

7 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。

8 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

9 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

10 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

11 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 pipeline   

n.管道，管线

参考例句：

• The pipeline supplies Jordan with 15 per cent of its crude oil.该管道供给约旦15%的原油。
• A single pipeline serves all the houses with water.一条单管路给所有的房子供水。

13 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

14 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

15 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

16 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。