2006年VOA标准英语-Bush: Iran has Weeks, Not Months, to Respond to

By Scott Stearns
White House
09 June 2006

President Bush says there will be U.N. Security Council action against Iran, if the country does not stop enriching uranium.  The U.N. nuclear agency says Iran this week launched a new round of uranium enrichment, as it received details of a new diplomatic effort to end the standoff.

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President Bush says the government in Tehran has weeks, not months, to respond to the latest proposal by the United States and its European allies.

By offering to meet with Iran if it agrees to suspend uranium enrichment, President Bush says the move represents a shift in U.S. tactics, not in strategy.

Iran has previously¹ said it will verifiably suspend enriching uranium. President Bush says it is time now to see whether the government in Tehran means it.

"If they choose not to suspend verifiably, there must be a consequence," said Mr. Bush.  "There must be a sense of urgency on our part to send a common message to them."

President Bush, right, looks over towards Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen  
  
The president spoke² following talks with Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen. The prime minister said he is pleased that Washington has joined European allies in presenting a unified³ package of proposals to Tehran.

"It's now up to the Iranians to take advantage of this window of opportunity," said Mr. Rasmussen.

During Friday prayers in Tehran a leading hard-line cleric said the country should continue enriching uranium. Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said the U.S.-European package of incentives⁴ is, in his words, "good for them," but not for Iran.

Details of those incentives are still sketchy⁵, but are thought to include support for Iran joining the World Trade Organization, help in building a nuclear power plant, and the suspension of some U.S. trade sanctions that prevent Iran from buying spare parts for an aging fleet of American-made aircraft.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says Iran launched a new round of uranium enrichment this week. President Bush says Iran is secretly developing a nuclear weapons program. Tehran says it is enriching uranium only for the peaceful civilian purpose of generating electricity

1 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

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 unified   

(unify 的过去式和过去分词)； 统一的； 统一标准的； 一元化的

参考例句：

• The teacher unified the answer of her pupil with hers. 老师核对了学生的答案。
• The First Emperor of Qin unified China in 221 B.C. 秦始皇于公元前221年统一中国。

4 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

5 sketchy   

adj.写生的，写生风格的，概略的

参考例句：

• The material he supplied is too sketchy.他提供的材料过于简略。
• Details of what actually happened are still sketchy.对于已发生事实的详细情况知道的仍然有限。