VOA慢速英语2015 2015年,美国面临更多外交政策的挑战

 

AS IT IS 2015-01-11 US Faces More Foreign Policy Challenges in 2015 2015年,美国面临更多外交政策的挑战 

A new year joins new challenges to old ones. Many disputes between countries -- and between governments and rebels -- continued throughout last year. And they continue as 2015 begins.

Barack Obama faces many challenges as he enters his final two years as president. In December, Mr. Obama marked the end of America’s longest war.

“After more than 13 years, our combat mission in Afghanistan will be over.” 

But the Department of Defense¹ says that does not mean America will no longer help Afghanistan. Rear Admiral John Kirby is a department spokesman. He spoke² to reporters before 2014 ended.

“It’s not like on December 31st we’re just gonna walk away. We aren’t. We’re going to remain.”

More than 10,000 American troops will remain in Afghanistan this year. They will help the Afghanistan air force. They will train Afghan troops. And they will help fight terrorists. The Afghan troops need the help because Taliban fighters have increased their attacks.

In 2015, the United States and other countries will also continue the fight against Islamic State militants³. The group became known to many in 2014 after it quickly took control of large parts of Iraq and Syria. The world learned more about the group when it showed videos of one of its members beheading Western hostages.

Airstrikes against the group appear to be working. Military experts predict the attacks will continue to weaken the terrorists.

In Iran, the United States and five other world powers will continue to try to reach a nuclear agreement. A November deadline passed without an agreement. Now, negotiators are hoping to reach an agreement by July. Secretary of State John Kerry says the negotiations⁴ will be difficult.

“These talks aren’t going to suddenly get easier just because we extend(ed) them. They’re tough. And they’ve been tough. And they’re gonna stay tough.”

Experts say the new, Republican-controlled U.S. Congress could make it more difficult for President Obama’s foreign policy team to be successful. The Republicans are the opposition⁵ party to Mr. Obama’s Democrats⁶.

The United States has already placed sanctions on Russia because of Russian support of Ukrainian separatists. The sanctions have hurt Russia’s economy and reduced the value of its money. But American officials say they do not want the Ukraine conflict to stop the U.S. and Russia from having a good relationship.

Eric Rubin is a deputy assistant secretary of state in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.

“No one is giving up on the U.S. - Russia relationship. We have to get it to a better place.”

The U.S. says it would end sanctions against Russia if it meets conditions, including withdrawing its troops from Ukrainian territory.

The U.S. also faces challenges in its relationship with North Korea. Investigators⁷ in the United States blamed North Korea for an attack on the computers of Sony Pictures Entertainment in November. President Obama answered with new sanctions against North Korea. It was the first foreign policy decision he made in the new year.

Words in This Story

challenge – n. a difficult task or problem; something that is hard to do

deadline – n. a date or time when something must be finished; the last day, hour, or minute that something will be accepted

tough – adj. very difficult to do or deal with

sanctions – n. an action that is taken or an order that is given to force a country to obey international laws by limiting or stopping trade with that country, by not allowing economic aid for that country. Usually plural⁸

separatists – n. a member of a group of people who want to form a new country or religion that is separate from the one they are in now

conditions – n. something you must do or accept in order for something to happen

1 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。

2 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。

3 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

4 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

5 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 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》

8 plural   

n.复数；复数形式；adj.复数的

参考例句：

• Most plural nouns in English end in's '.英语的复数名词多以s结尾。
• Here you should use plural pronoun.这里你应该用复数代词。