Summit of Americas' Final Declaration Reflects Disagreements

Summit of Americas' Final Declaration Reflects Disagreements

 

Greg Flakus

In Monterrey, Mexico leaders of 34 nations from the Western Hemisphere, including President Bush, ended a two-day special Summit of the Americas on Tuesday with renewed commitments to fight terrorism, corruption² and poverty. President Bush used the venue³ to advance his proposals and to enhance relations with some regional neighbors.

In the end, the United States did not get all that it had wanted from this summit, but the meeting did provide the opportunity for President Bush to meet with regional counterparts in formal sessions and in one-on-one encounters. There were obvious points of disagreement during the two days of meetings, but the host, Mexican President Vicente Fox, says the overall tone was constructive⁴.

He said the discussions often included sharp differences of opinion and ideology⁵, but that they were always characterized by respect for each person and each person's point of view.

One of the sharpest divides was over the issues of free trade and the fight against poverty. President Bush and President Fox extolled⁶ the benefits of free trade and referred to the expansion in commerce that has resulted from the North American Free Trade Agreement that unites their nations and Canada.

Brazilian leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva argued that regional leaders must make the effort to reduce poverty their primary goal. He said the gap between rich and poor in Latin America is growing and that free trade alone will not resolve this problem.

There was also disagreement over a U.S. proposal to bar leaders of corrupt¹ nations from participation⁷ in future summits. Some nations were concerned over what criteria⁸ would be used to determine whether a nation was corrupt.

In the final declaration, summit participants simply agreed to fight against corruption through consultations⁹. The declaration also side-stepped the trade issue, leaving that for another time and place. The closing statement did include pledges of further regional cooperation in the effort to stop terrorism.

During the summit, President Bush also discussed his new immigration proposal with President Fox, who backed the idea. President Bush also invited his Mexican counterpart to his ranch¹⁰ in Texas for a bilateral¹¹ meeting in March.

President Bush also had an opportunity to meet with Canada's new Prime Minister, Paul Martin, to discuss the mad cow disease problem and other issues. Mr. Bush also announced that Canada would be able to bid on future reconstruction¹² projects in Iraq that are valued at more than $4.5 billion.

 

注释：

Monterrey  蒙特雷，墨西哥东北部一城市，位于马塔莫罗斯东部。

Western Hemisphere  西半球

commitment [kE5mitmEnt] n. 许诺，承担义务

venue [5venju:] n. 会议地点

enhance [in5hB:ns] vt. 增强

counterpart [5kauntEpB:t] n. 对等的人

encounter [in5kauntE] n. 会面

Vicente Fox  维森特·福克斯·克萨达，墨西哥总统。

overall [5EuvErC:l] adj. 总的，全部的

ideology [7aidi5ClEdVi] n. 意识形态

point of view  观点

extoll [iks5tCl] vt. 高度赞扬

the North American Free Trade Agreement  北美自由贸易协定

Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva  路易斯·依纳西奥·卢拉·达西尔瓦，巴西历史上第一位左翼政府总统。

bar [bB:(r)] n. 禁止

criterion [krai5tiEriEn] n. （批评判断的）标准，规范；复数形式为criteria。

side-step vt. 避开

closing [5klEuziN] adj. 结束的

back [bAk] v. 后退，支持

ranch [rAntF] n. 大农场

bid on  承包……的投标

 

1 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

2 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。

3 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

4 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

5 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

6 extolled   

v.赞颂，赞扬，赞美( extol的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school. 他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Tessenow decried the metropolis and extolled the peasant virtues. 特森诺夫痛诋大都市，颂扬农民的美德。 来自辞典例句

7 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

8 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

9 consultations   

n.磋商（会议）( consultation的名词复数 )；商讨会；协商会；查找

参考例句：

• Consultations can be arranged at other times by appointment. 磋商可以通过预约安排在其他时间。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Consultations are under way. 正在进行磋商。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。

11 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

12 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。