2006年VOA标准英语-Bush and Blair Meeting Dominated by Iraq Report

By Deborah Block
Washington, DC
08 December 2006
 
watch Bush Blair Iraq report

joint1 press availability, Thursday, 7 Dec. 2006, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070511/1513520.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

President Bush, right, and British Prime Minister Tony Blair take part in a joint press availability, Thursday, 7 Dec. 2006, in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building in Washington

U.S. President George W. Bush and Britain's Prime Minister Tony Blair met at the White House Thursday -- one day after a report by the U.S. bipartisan Iraq Study Group said American policy in Iraq is not working, and called for a change of strategy. During a joint news conference with the British leader, President Bush said although the report has good ideas on how to go forward, it is only one of several recommendations he will consider.

The report issued by the Iraq Study Group describes the situation in Iraq as "grave and deteriorating³." At a news conference, President Bush called the violence unsettling, and said "it's bad in Iraq." He said progress in Iraq had not occurred as fast as he had hoped, and he thought U.S.-led forces would succeed quicker in stopping the fighting, which he blamed on extremists both inside and outside the country.

"And it is true that Sunni and Shia extremists are targeting each other's innocent civilians⁴ and engaging in brutal⁵ reprisals⁶. It is also true that forces beyond Iraq's borders contribute to this violence and the prime minister [of Iraq, Nouri al-Maliki ] put it this way: He said the violence is not an accident or a result of faulty planning. It is a deliberate strategy. It is the direct result of outside extremists teaming up with internal extremists -- al-Qaida with the Sunni insurgents⁷ and Iran with Shia militia⁸, to foment⁹ hatred¹⁰ and to throttle¹¹ at birth the possibility of a non sectarian democracy."

The ten-member Iraq Study Group recommends the U.S. military change its main mission from combat to support, and suggests pulling out most American troops by early 2008. Before announcing any decisions, Mr. Bush said he is also considering recommendations from the U.S. Defense¹² and State Departments.

He went on to say that any resolution on the Iraq conflict is tied to reducing tensions between Israel and the Palestinians, as well as other parts of the Middle East.

Prime Minister Blair is to travel to the Middle East soon to meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders. He agreed with Mr. Bush on the importance of reducing tensions in the Middle East, and said the consequences are severe if the government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki fails.  “All of us who are engaged in this, but particularly those in the region, live up to their responsibilities in supporting the Maliki government in ensuring that Iraq is able to proceed in a democratic and non-sectarian way. And I think that finally, as you rightly emphasize, it is important that we do everything that we can in the wider Middle East to bring about peace between Israel and the Palestinians."

The Iraq Study Group is recommending the U.S. engage with Iraq's neighbors, Syria and Iran. But Mr. Bush reiterated¹³ his view that Tehran must first suspend uranium enrichment, and both Syria and Iran must show they are serious about wanting to improve the security situation in Iraq.

"If people come to the table to discuss Iraq, they must come understanding their responsibilities to not fund terrorists, to help this young democracy survive, to help with the economics of the country. And if people are not committed, if Syria and Iran are not committed to that concept, then they shouldn't bother to show up."

On Thursday, the co-chairmen of the Iraq Study Group met with the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss the report. Although many in Congress have praised the report, some are skeptical¹⁴ of two of its recommendations - accelerating the U.S. military's work to train Iraqi forces, and a diplomatic approach to Syria and Iran.

Former secretary of state, Republican James Baker¹⁵, says it is unlikely Iran would help the United States succeed in Iraq. "If we ask Iran to come and they say no, we and the Iraqi government, and they say no, then we will hold them up to public scrutiny¹⁶ as the rejectionist state that they have proven to be. Now, we're not naive¹⁷ enough to think that they - in this case they may want to help - they probably don't. The president authorized¹⁸ me to approach the Iranian government. I did so. And they, in effect, said 'We would not be inclined to help you this time around.' Fine. What do we lose by saying 'We're getting all of Iraq's neighbors together, we want you to come,' and if they say no, we show the world what they're all about."

Mr. Baker says, despite partisan² differences over how to end U.S. involvement in Iraq, the Bush administration and Congress must work together to forge a new course of action.

1 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

2 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

3 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

4 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

5 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

6 reprisals   

n.报复（行为）( reprisal的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They did not want to give evidence for fear of reprisals. 他们因为害怕报复而不想作证。
• They took bloody reprisals against the leaders. 他们对领导进行了血腥的报复。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

8 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

9 foment   

v.煽动，助长

参考例句：

• The rebels know the truth and seek to foment revolution.那些叛乱者知道真相，并且想办法来挑起革命。
• That's an attempt to foment discord.这是挑拨。

10 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

11 throttle   

n.节流阀，节气阀，喉咙；v.扼喉咙，使窒息，压

参考例句：

• These government restrictions are going to throttle our trade.这些政府的限制将要扼杀我们的贸易。
• High tariffs throttle trade between countries.高的关税抑制了国与国之间的贸易。

12 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。

13 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

14 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

15 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

16 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

17 naive   

adj.幼稚的，轻信的；天真的

参考例句：

• It's naive of you to believe he'll do what he says.相信他会言行一致，你未免太单纯了。
• Don't be naive.The matter is not so simple.你别傻乎乎的。事情没有那么简单。

18 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。