美国有线新闻 CNN 蓬佩奥取消莫斯科之行转访欧盟 商讨伊朗威胁

蓬佩奥取消莫斯科之行转访欧盟 商讨伊朗威胁

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had been planning a trip to Moscow, Russia this Tuesday. Yesterday he canceled it and instead headed to Brussels, Belgium. That's where the leaders of the United Kingdom, Germany and France were scheduled to discuss international tensions with Iran and the U.S. Secretary of State decided¹ to join them. U.S. military officials recently said they had intelligence that Iran and groups that operate beneath its military were planning to target U.S. troops in the Middle East and at sea.

In response, America sent warships², bomber³ planes and other military equipment to the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow passage of water that borders Iran. Now, U.S. intelligence indicates Iran may be putting missiles aboard small Iranian boats in the Persian Gulf⁴ and the U.S. is moving missiles of its own to the region. An American military official says they're defensive⁵ in nature. But the U.S. says that the threat from Iran is still real and credible⁶ and that America is taking it seriously.

Meantime, U.S. President Donald Trump⁷ is warning Iran not to take action against American interests saying quote,"if they do anything it would be a very bad mistake. We'll see what happens." If there is a confrontation⁸ between Iran and the U.S. the Middle Eastern country has threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz. That could impact the global economy since about 30 percent of the worlds crude oil is shipped through the strait. There was an incident earlier this week involving four oil carrying ships that were near the strait. They were apparently⁹ targeted by an act of sabotage¹⁰. International officials, including U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo are not saying Iran was behind it and Iran's government called the incident quote, "alarming and regrettable". But anxiety is high in the region.

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

3 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

4 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

5 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

6 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

7 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

8 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

9 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

10 sabotage   

n.怠工，破坏活动，破坏；v.从事破坏活动，妨害，破坏

参考例句：

• They tried to sabotage my birthday party.他们企图破坏我的生日晚会。
• The fire at the factory was caused by sabotage.那家工厂的火灾是有人蓄意破坏引起的。