2006年VOA标准英语-Bush Urges Musharraf, Karzai to Unite in War on

By Paula Wolfson
Washington
28 September 2006
 
President Bush is urging the leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan to focus on the cause that unites them: victory in the war on terror. He spoke¹ as he welcomed Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and Afghan President Hamid Karzai to the White House for a highly unusual three-way meeting.

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		Presidents Musharraf (left), Bush and Karzai at White House

They met over dinner in the private family dining room of the White House.

Only the three presidents and a few top aides were present. No formal agenda was announced. But it was clear as the two guests arrived at the White House that the main goal for Mr. Bush was to ease tensions between the visiting leaders.

They are at odds² over steps taken to secure their common border, and there is friction³ over exactly who is to blame for a rise in violence in parts of Afghanistan, and the so-far futile⁴ search for al-Qaida leader Osama bin⁵ Laden⁶.

As they posed for pictures briefly⁷ before going in to dinner, Presidents Karzai and Musharraf seemed ill at ease, and never looked at each other. President Bush, standing⁸ between the two, was the only one who spoke.

"These two men are personal friends of mine. They are strong leaders who have an understanding of the world in which we live. They understand that the forces of moderation are being challenged by extremists and radicals," he said.

Mr. Bush's message was clear as he talked about the common challenges faced by Pakistan and Afghanistan, and the need for the two leaders to work together.

"All of us must protect our countries but at the same time we all must work to make the world a more hopeful place. And so today's dinner is a chance for us to strategize together; to talk about the need to cooperate to make sure that people have got a hopeful future," he said.

The dinner began relatively⁹ late, by Bush White House standards, with the three men sitting down after sunset in accordance with Islamic tradition during the holy month of Ramadan, when Muslims fast during the day. In his remarks, President Bush said he and his guests may not share a religion, but they do share a goal.

"We welcome Muslim leaders here in the White House. I look forward to having dinner with friends of mine who do not happen to share the same faith I do, but nevertheless share the same outlook for a hopeful world," he said.

President Bush has often said Afghanistan and Pakistan are crucial allies in the war on terror. As he prepared to usher¹⁰ his guests into the White House, he said both want to see Osama bin Laden captured, noting al-Qaida has threatened both the life of President Musharraf and the future of the Karzai government.

"As we work for a more hopeful world, we will continue to make sure that extremists, such as Osama bin Laden, that wants to hurt my friend here, as well as upset the democracy in Afghanistan, is brought to justice," the president said.

Presidents Karzai and Musharraf both came to the United States to address the U.N. General Assembly. Each man had a separate meeting scheduled with President Bush when the White House suddenly announced plans last Tuesday to add a three-way session.

The need for some sort of rapprochement has become increasingly clear in recent months. President Karzai, for example, has accused President Musharraf of looking the other way while Islamic schools in Pakistan serve as training grounds for terrorists. The Pakistani leader, in return, has said that his Afghan counterpart is ignoring reality, charging the root of the terror problem is in Afghanistan.

1 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。

2 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

3 friction   

n.摩擦，摩擦力

参考例句：

• When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后，他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
• Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体，并使其停止。

4 futile   

adj.无效的，无用的，无希望的

参考例句：

• They were killed,to the last man,in a futile attack.因为进攻失败，他们全部被杀，无一幸免。
• Their efforts to revive him were futile.他们对他抢救无效。

5 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

6 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

7 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

8 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

9 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

10 usher   

n.带位员，招待员；vt.引导，护送；vi.做招待，担任引座员

参考例句：

• The usher seated us in the front row.引座员让我们在前排就座。
• They were quickly ushered away.他们被迅速领开。