2006年VOA标准英语-Turkish Foreign Minister Reaffirms Country Will

By Sabina Castelfranco
Rome
08 November 2006

Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul said Wednesday his country will work to meet "all criteria¹" set by the European Union. He spoke² in Rome after an EU report was released saying Turkey must do more to prevent torture and protect freedom of expression.

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forum3 in Rome, Nov. 8, 2006" src="/upimg/allimg/070508/1424150.jpg" width="210" border="0" /> Abdullah Gul attends Italian-Turkish forum in Rome, Nov. 8, 2006

The Turkish foreign minister, Abdullah Gul, left no doubts about Turkey's commitment to reform.

Gul acknowledged that Turkey still had to make some changes to meet goals set by the EU and said negotiations⁴ would be difficult, but in the end, he said, positive results would be achieved.

The foreign minister was speaking following the release in Brussels by the European Commission of a progress report on Turkey's EU membership.

In the progress report, the European Commission criticized Ankara's human rights record and lack of political reforms. It threatened to recommend freezing EU entry talks unless Turkey does more to prevent torture and protect freedom of expression.

The report also cited concern about women and trade union rights, civilian⁵ control over the military and the rights and freedoms of the Kurdish population.

The Dutch member of the European parliament, Camiel Eurling, who wrote the report on Turkey's accession to the EU, explained the Commission's position.

"We really need to see a Turkey that continues to reform on its road to the European Union," he said. "I always say if Turkey becomes a country that is as free as the Netherlands, Belgium or France, that has really the freedoms, that is good to its minorities, that has women's rights on a European level, it will not just be a Turkey that is much better for its citizens, it will also be a Turkey that will be much better and easier to accept by the citizens of the European Union than the Turkey of today where Christian⁶ minorities have problems, where women do not have the same rights and where the army has way too strong a position."

The European Commission said Wednesday it had decided⁷ against recommending the immediate⁸ suspension of membership talks with Turkey.

But it said Turkey must implement⁹ a customs pact¹⁰ with EU member Cyprus by mid-December. The European Commission wants Turkey to open its ports and airports to Cypriot goods before a key EU leaders' summit in the middle of December.

1 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。

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 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

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 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。

6 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

7 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。

8 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

9 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

10 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。