2007年VOA标准英语-White House Presses Pakistan on al-Qaida Havens

By Scott Stearns
Washington
18 July 2007

The White House is stepping up pressure on Pakistan's president, General Pervez Musharraf to oust¹ al-Qaida terrorists from remote areas along the border with Afghanistan. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns has the story.

Tony Snow (file photo)

White House Spokesman Tony Snow says there is no doubt that President Musharraf needs to take more aggressive steps to end al-Qaida's safe haven² in Pakistani tribal³ areas.

The terrorist group's resurgence⁴ in those areas has been known for some time. But Snow says this week's National Intelligence Estimate provides a moment of focus. It says al-Qaida is using that safe haven to protect and rebuild key elements of its ability to attack the United States.

U.S. officials trace the resurgence to an agreement President Musharraf reached with tribal leaders in 2006 to withdraw government troops if those leaders agreed to block al-Qaida and the Taleban from operating in the area.

White House spokesman Snow says President Bush does not regret taking President Musharraf at his word about that plan, but it has not worked. "Pakistan is a sovereign government and Pervez Musharraf is a man who, as president of Pakistan, and as the general, has an obligation and a challenge to do what he thinks is going to be most effective in securing peace within his own land and also at the same time obviously dealing⁵ with many of the troublesome issues that have to do with the incursion across the border of Taleban fighters into Afghanistan. The one thing we can say for sure is that the plan, as well-intentioned as it was, didn't work," he said.

When something does not work, Snow says, you have to fix it, and that is what is going on now.

Pakistan's government has rejected as unsubstantiated the U.S. intelligence report that al-Qaida is regrouping in northwestern Pakistan. A foreign ministry⁶ statement says Pakistan would take action to eliminate any al-Qaida hideouts but that it needs concrete information and intelligence from the United States.

With 85-thousand Pakistani security forces at the border and more forward deployments underway, Snow says President Bush believes President Musharraf is serious about solving the problem.

Pakistan has a 100-million-dollar development plan for the region, which Snow says America will supplement with 150 million dollars over five years.

Washington provides 300 million dollars a year in military financing, reimburses⁷ the government for counter- terrorism costs, and has provided fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters for surveillance.

Snow says President Musharraf wants additional funding to support Frontier Corps⁸ members who are doing most of the fighting in those tribal areas, and the Bush Administration is looking for ways to meet that request.

White House Homeland Security Adviser⁹ Fran Townsend says President Bush has not ruled out unilateral action against al-Qaida and has made perfectly¹⁰ clear that he will pursue what she calls "actionable targets" in Pakistan or anywhere else.

But the president wants to work with the Pakistani leader, who Townsend says is clearly committed to taking-on terrorists. "Just this month, they've lost upwards¹¹ of 80 soldiers in the fight, so there should be no question that Pakistan takes it seriously for their own reasons, and we are working with them to encourage them to deny Pakistan as a safe haven. They don't want Pakistan as a safe haven for themselves," he said.

Despite setbacks in Pakistan's tribal areas, White House Spokesman Snow says the United States is determined¹² to get al-Qaida leader Osama bin¹³ Laden¹⁴.

The Central Intelligence Agency last year disbanded a ten-year effort to hunt down bin Laden, reassigning those agents to the broader fight against terrorism.

1 oust   

vt.剥夺，取代，驱逐

参考例句：

• The committee wanted to oust him from the union.委员会想把他从工会中驱逐出去。
• The leaders have been ousted from power by nationalists.这些领导人被民族主义者赶下了台。

2 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

3 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

4 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。

5 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

6 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

7 reimburses   

v.偿还，付还( reimburse的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Reimburses the actual medical expenses due to an accidental injury or sickness. 赔偿因罹患疾病或意外事故，而导致的实际医药费用。 来自互联网
• ACE reimburses the insured's loss under policy term. ACE依保单承保责任补偿被保险人之损失。 来自互联网

8 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

10 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

11 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。

12 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

13 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。

14 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。