2006年VOA标准英语-Iran's Nuclear Dispute May Overshadow Bali

By Nancy-Amelia Collins
Bali
12 May 2006

Leaders from eight countries with large Muslim populations began arriving on the Indonesian island of Bali for a summit on trade and development issues. But, as VOA's Nancy-Amelia Collins reports from Bali, Iran's deepening dispute with the West over its nuclear ambitions is likely to dominate the conference.

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Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, left, with Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, upon arrival in Bali to attend the D-8 Summit  
  

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Bali Friday evening after a three-day state visit to Jakarta, where he lambasted the United States and its allies over their objections to Iran's nuclear program.

While in Jakarta, Mr. Ahmadinejad made fiery¹ speeches denouncing the U.S. and Israel, saying repeatedly that Iran would not give up its nuclear program, which he says is for peaceful purposes.

"We will absolutely not back off from our own rights and our position which are legitimate² and in line with the provisions of the international nuclear instruments," he said.

The U.S. and its European allies believe Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons and are pushing for United Nations sanctions against Tehran unless it halts its uranium enrichment program.

Indonesia, a secular³ and democratic nation with the world's largest Muslim population, is hosting the one-day summit Saturday of eight developing nations known as the D-8.

The summit is expected to focus on economic and political cooperation, including in science and technology, as well as addressing ways to ease the poverty that affects the members. However, many analysts⁴ think the countries' leaders will spend much of their meeting discussing Iran's nuclear dispute.

Indonesia has good relations with both Washington and Tehran and is eager to show the world the modern face of a pluralistic and moderate Islam.
 

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, right, greets Pakistan's PM Shaukat Aziz for bilateral⁵ talks ahead of D-8 Summit at Bali Convention Center  
  
After Friday prayers on Bali, a predominately Hindu island, Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono urged Muslims to fight extremism.

Presidential spokesman Andi Mallarengeng says Mr. Yudhoyono wants to get the message across that Islam is a religion of moderation.

"The president's message is that Islam is a religion of peace and we should cooperate, ... now the challenge of Islam, just like in any other religion, is extremism. Islam can show a different face; in Indonesia it shows a different face. We have some problems with terrorism, but Islam is a religion of peace," he said.

Indonesia has been plagued by a series of terrorist bombings. The biggest took place on Bali in 2002, killing⁶ over 200 people. More than 200 Muslim extremists have been arrested and prosecuted⁷ in Indonesia for the roles they played in the bombings over the past four years.

The presidential spokesman said the venue⁸ for the D-8 summit was chosen for symbolic⁹ reasons.

"You see the conference is here in Bali," he said. "D-8 is a caucus¹⁰ of Muslim countries but we are holding it in Bali and it shows that in Indonesia - the biggest Muslim country in the world - pluralism exists."

Aside from Indonesia and Iran, the D-8 groups Nigeria, Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Egypt.

1 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

2 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

3 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

4 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

5 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。

8 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

9 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

10 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。