2006年VOA标准英语-NATO General Has Plan for Afghan Security, Deve

By Al Pessin
Kabul
15 June 2006

 
NATO soldiers patrol narrow lane with open sewer¹ in Kabul
  
The British general who commands NATO forces in Afghanistan says he has a plan for bringing security and development to the troubled southern and eastern parts of the country, as his authority expands in the coming months.

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At his base in central Kabul, the driveway lined with the flags of NATO members, Lieutenant² General David Richards and his staff are preparing to expand their authority into southern Afghanistan by the end of July, and into the east as soon as possible afterwards.  The moves will give NATO responsibility for the security and development of the entire country, replacing the U.S. led coalition³ that ousted⁴ the Taleban regime in 2001.

General Richards says the larger number of troops he will command, and the development resources of the 26 NATO countries and 10 non-members that have volunteered for this project, will enable the alliance to move Afghanistan forward in a way that the coalition was not able to do.

Lieutenant General David Richards   
  
"We're looking at the creation of what one might call Zones of Security in carefully analyzed⁵ areas where we can create a much greater and genuine feeling of security, in which the international organizations and the government can much more freely do the things they all want to do, which is to start creating those improvements that are so important for success," he said.

General Richards says the security and development efforts in Afghanistan need to be pursued "in a much more coherent way."  With 50 percent more troops than the U.S.-led coalition and more countries committed to helping⁶ with reconstruction⁷, the general believes he will have the resources to get the kind of results that have been lacking, a situation he believes has led to frustration⁸ and contributed to a resurgence⁹ of support for Taleban insurgents¹⁰ and drug-traffickers.

"With that comes the great psychological improvement that gives people, say down in the south, the courage to say to the Taleban when they come into their villages, 'we don't want that,'" he said.

But the general acknowledges the job will not be easy.  He says it could take five years for the Security Zones he envisions to grow and join together into larger areas of safety and prosperity.  Many Afghans and foreign experts believe it could take even longer.

And you don't have to go far from General Richards' heavily fortified¹¹ compound to see evidence of the challenges that NATO, the Afghan government and the international aid organizations face.

Along the gravel¹² paths, pock-marked lanes and open sewers¹³ of a nearby neighborhood, a patrol of NATO soldiers provides an occasional show of force and attempts some rapport¹⁴ building, while children beg for chocolate from the heavily armed and armored troops.  On this day, the patrol is led by a senior commander, British Brigadier General Nick Pope, who is introduced to a community leader.

 
British Brigadier General Nick Pope and Mossen Homayoun
  
"If you could have one thing, one way of making the area better, what would it be?" asked Mr. Pope.

The neighborhood elder, Mossen Homayoun, tells General Pope this is a very poor neighborhood and it needs everything.  Pressed for details, he points to the huge hole in the road, and also says he could use a school building to provide a cool place for the neighborhood children to learn during the hot days of summer.  General Pope promises to try to help, but he acknowledges he can't solve all the neighborhood's problems.

"Clearly, I don't have the money, the resources or the power to do development at the macro level, build roads or whatever," he added.  "But what I do have [are] an enormous amount of soldiers who are willing to put their life and soul into providing a little bit of betterment.  So whether it's building a new school or getting a school furniture, a little bit of a tangible¹⁵ improvement like that actually goes a long way."

If providing tangible development for a neighborhood in Kabul is a challenge, doing the same in remote areas plagued by insurgents is even more daunting¹⁶ for the NATO commander in Afghanistan, General Richards, the man who does have the responsibility, the resources and a plan to work at the national level.

1 sewer   

n.排水沟，下水道

参考例句：

• They are tearing up the street to repair a sewer. 他们正挖开马路修下水道。
• The boy kicked a stone into the sewer. 那个男孩把一石子踢进了下水道。

2 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

3 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

4 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

5 analyzed   

v.分析( analyze的过去式和过去分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析

参考例句：

• The doctors analyzed the blood sample for anemia. 医生们分析了贫血的血样。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The young man did not analyze the process of his captivation and enrapturement, for love to him was a mystery and could not be analyzed. 这年轻人没有分析自己蛊惑著迷的过程，因为对他来说，爱是个不可分析的迷。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

8 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。

9 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

10 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

11 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

12 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

13 sewers   

n.阴沟，污水管，下水道( sewer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sewers discharge out at sea. 下水道的污水排入海里。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Another municipal waste problem is street runoff into storm sewers. 有关都市废水的另外一个问题是进入雨水沟的街道雨水。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

14 rapport   

n.和睦，意见一致

参考例句：

• She has an excellent rapport with her staff.她跟她职员的关系非常融洽。
• We developed a high degree of trust and a considerable personal rapport.我们发展了高度的互相信任和不错的私人融洽关系。

15 tangible   

adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的

参考例句：

• The policy has not yet brought any tangible benefits.这项政策还没有带来任何实质性的好处。
• There is no tangible proof.没有确凿的证据。

16 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。