VOA标准英语2009年-US President Has Been Considering Afgh

 

Mr. Obama's focus on Afghanistan began during the 2008 presidential campaign when he visited the country for the first time

Siri Nyrop and John Walker | Washington, DC 01 December 2009

 
President Obama's decision on a new strategy for Afghanistan was preceded by months of statements, smaller decisions and meetings with his security cabinet

President Obama's decision on a new strategy for Afghanistan was preceded by months of statements, smaller decisions and meetings with his security cabinet. This timeline, begins with the 2008 presidential election and ends with President Obama's last strategy session before his announcement at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

During the presidential campaign, in July 2008, then Senator Obama visited Afghanistan for the first time. He said he opposes the war in Iraq and favors returning the focus to Afghanistan. He called it the front line in the fight against terrorism.

In January 2009, Barack Obama was sworn in as president of the United States.  He mentioned Afghanistan in his inaugural¹ address.  "We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan," he stated.

Two days later, President Obama appointed Richard Holbrooke as special envoy² to Afghanistan and Pakistan.

In February, the White House released a statement, announcing a troop increase of 17,000 soldiers to stabilize³ what it called a a deteriorating⁴ situation in Afghanistan.   

In March, the president announced a new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"So I want the American people to understand that we have a clear and focused goal:  to disrupt, dismantle⁵ and defeat al-Qaida in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and to prevent their return to either country in the future. That's the goal that must be achieved," Mr. Obama said. "That is a cause that could not be more just.  And to the terrorists who oppose us, my message is the same:  We will defeat you."

In May, President Obama hosted Pakistani President Asif Zardari and Afghan President Hamid Karzai at the White House.  The meeting coincided with public outrage⁶ in Afghanistan over a U.S. airstrike in Farah province that caused many civilian⁷ casualties.  

Days later, the Pentagon announced it was replacing General David McKiernan, the commander of U.S. and Nato forces in Afghanistan.  Secretary of Defense⁸ Robert Gates said "fresh eyes" and a "new approach" were needed to deal with the worsening situation in Afghanistan.  

In June, General Stanley McChrystal took over as top U.S. and Nato commander in Afghanistan. He ordered a review of the military mission.  He said the war will not be measured by the number of insurgents⁹ killed, but by the number of civilians¹⁰ protected from violence.

In August, facing the highest number of monthly U.S. casualties in Afghanistan since 2001, President Obama spoke¹¹ to America's largest veterans group.  He described the war in Afghanistan as crucial to U.S. national security.

"The insurgency¹² in Afghanistan didn't just happen overnight, and we won't defeat it overnight. This will not be quick, nor easy. But we must never forget: This is not a war of choice," Mr. Obama said. "This is a war of necessity."  

On August 20, Afghans went to the polls to elect a new president.  Later, reports of widespread fraud raised questions about U.S. support for President Hamid Karzai.

In September, U.S. public opinion polls showed declining support for the war effort in Afghanistan.

U.S. media reported that General McChrystal -- in a confidential¹³ memo¹⁴ -- had warned the war will likely end in failure without additional U.S. troops.  Some reports said the general was requesting up to 40,000 more troops.

With the policy review ongoing¹⁵, media reports in October said President Obama was considering alternatives to just engaging the Taliban -- such as counter insurgency strategies to protect densely¹⁶ populated Afghan areas or concentrating on killing¹⁷ Al-Qaida leaders in Pakistan.

As the review continued, President Karzai reluctantly agreed to a run-off election. Investigators¹⁸ had ruled he received less than the minimum 50 percent required for victory.

But his chief rival, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah withdrew, stating that a transparent¹⁹ election was not possible.

In November, President Karzai was declared the winner of Afghanistan's presidential election.     

President Obama called on Mr. Karzai to rid his administration of corruption²⁰. "I did emphasize to President Karzai that the American people and the international community as a whole want to continue to partner with him and his government in achieving prosperity and security in Afghanistan, but I emphasize that this has to be a point in time in which we begin to write a new chapter," Mr. Obama said.

In the final days of November, President Obama held his last session on Afghanistan strategy in the White House Situation Room. The president said he would announce his decision on December 1st.

 

1 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

2 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

3 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

4 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

5 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

6 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

7 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 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

10 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

11 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。

12 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

13 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

14 memo   

n.照会，备忘录；便笺；通知书；规章

参考例句：

• Do you want me to send the memo out?您要我把这份备忘录分发出去吗？
• Can you type a memo for me?您能帮我打一份备忘录吗？

15 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

16 densely   

ad.密集地；浓厚地

参考例句：

• A grove of trees shadowed the house densely. 树丛把这幢房子遮蔽得很密实。
• We passed through miles of densely wooded country. 我们穿过好几英里茂密的林地。

17 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。

18 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

20 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。