Powell Calls Brazil 'Solid Candidate' for Permanent UN Secur

By David Gollust

Secretary of State Colin Powell, on his first visit to Brazil, says that country is a "solid candidate for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council under anticipated U.N. reforms. Mr. Powell is holding talks in Brasilia with senior Brazilian officials including President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva.

The United States is not endorsing¹ any Security Council candidates, at least until a reform panel appointed by U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan submits its recommendations later this year.

But Mr. Powell is speaking favorably of the declared candidacy of Brazil, which has been active in regional peace-making in Haiti and Venezuela and is increasingly seen as a global economic power.

Addressing a Brazilian-American business group in Brazil's financial hub, Sao Paulo, the Secretary said Brazil would appear to meet important criteria² for a permanent seat on the council:

"Brazil would have to be seen as an important candidate for such membership," he said. "A large, non-nuclear democracy, solidly grounded, playing a responsible role on the world stage, willing to send troops to other parts of the world, including the hemisphere in peacekeeping efforts. It is playing a very responsible role in discussions on the world stage. And I would certainly think Brazil would be a solid candidate."

Pressure has been building for change in the structure of the United Nations, where veto-wielding permanent membership on the Security Council has been limited since the founding of the world body to the United States, Russia, Britain, France, and China.

Brazil, the largest and most populous³ Latin American nation, has been openly campaigning for a seat, and recently joined in an informal alliance with three other leading candidate countries, India, Japan, and Germany.

Despite seeming ideological⁴ differences, the Bush administration and the leftist Brazilian government of President Lula have had increasingly warm relations.
The United States has praised Brazil for assuming command of U.N. peacekeeping forces in Haiti, and for its leadership of the informal "Friends of Venezuela" grouping which helped defuse the political crisis in that country over the rule of President Hugo Chavez.

The two countries have had disagreements, with President Lula, a former trade union leader, opposing the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, and criticizing American agricultural trade barriers including a stiff tariff⁵ on sugar, a major Brazilian export.

In his Sao Paulo appearance, Mr. Powell said he thinks major trade issues can be resolved and envisaged⁶ completion of a Free Trade Agreement of the Americas, though probably not by the 2005 target date.

Mr. Powell also said the United States is not worried about Brazil's dispute with the International Atomic Energy Agency over access by U.N. inspectors⁷ to its uranium-enrichment facility at Resende near Rio de Janiero.

Press accounts have cited U.S. concerns about Brazil's intentions, and the effect the dispute might have on getting other countries, including Iran, to open their nuclear facilities to inspections⁸. However in his Sao Paulo remarks, the secretary said the issue is not even on the U.S-Brazilian agenda.

"Brazil has a nuclear power industry. It is quite appropriate," he said. "We would like to be doing more with nuclear power in the United States. It is a good source of power. But proliferation concerns or nuclear weapons concerns with respect to Brazil are not in any American briefing book, or of concern to me, or any of my colleagues in Washington."

Brazilian officials have stressed they have no interest in nuclear weapons, but say they want to protect proprietary⁹ information with regard to their enrichment techniques for reactor¹⁰ fuel.

Mr. Powell said an IAEA team is coming to Brazil later this month and that he is confident the access question will be resolved.
注释：
candidate 候选人
permanent 永久的
U.N. Security Council 联合国安全理事会
anticipated 预期的
endorse 认可
panel 座谈小组
submit 提交
hub 中心
criteria 标准
Latin 拉丁人的
alliance 联盟
ideological 意识形态的
assume 采取
barrier 屏障
uranium 铀
enrichment 丰富
agenda 议程
proliferation 增殖

1 endorsing   

v.赞同( endorse的现在分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• Yet Communist leaders are also publicly endorsing religion in an unprecedented way. 不过，共产党领导层对宗教信仰的公开认可也是以前不曾有过的。 来自互联网
• Connecticut Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman is endorsing Republican Senator John McCain. 康涅狄格州独立派参议员约瑟夫。列波曼将会票选共和议员约翰。麦凯恩。 来自互联网

2 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。

3 populous   

adj.人口稠密的，人口众多的

参考例句：

• London is the most populous area of Britain.伦敦是英国人口最稠密的地区。
• China is the most populous developing country in the world.中国是世界上人口最多的发展中国家。

4 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

5 tariff   

n.关税，税率；(旅馆、饭店等)价目表，收费表

参考例句：

• There is a very high tariff on jewelry.宝石类的关税率很高。
• The government is going to lower the tariff on importing cars.政府打算降低进口汽车的关税。

6 envisaged   

想像，设想( envisage的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He envisaged an old age of loneliness and poverty. 他面对着一个孤独而贫困的晚年。
• Henry Ford envisaged an important future for the motor car. 亨利·福特为汽车设想了一个远大前程。

7 inspectors   

n.检查员( inspector的名词复数 )；（英国公共汽车或火车上的）查票员；（警察）巡官；检阅官

参考例句：

• They got into the school in the guise of inspectors. 他们假装成视察员进了学校。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Inspectors checked that there was adequate ventilation. 检查员已检查过，通风良好。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 proprietary   

n.所有权，所有的；独占的；业主

参考例句：

• We had to take action to protect the proprietary technology.我们必须采取措施保护专利技术。
• Proprietary right is the foundation of jus rerem.所有权是物权法之根基。

10 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。