2006年VOA标准英语-Rumsfeld to Make First US Defense Secretar

By Al Pessin
Tunis
12 February 2006

Donald H. Rumsfeld speaks to the press after bilateral¹ talks with Tunisian Minister of Defense² Kamel Morjane 
  
  
U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has announced that he will make what officials believe is the first visit to Algeria by a someone in his position, during his current swing through North Africa. The secretary says he wants to thank Algeria, as well as Tunisia and Morocco, for their help in the war on terrorism, an effort the United States is supporting with money and technical assistance, as well as this high-level visit.

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Secretary Rumsfeld says he decided³ to visit Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria because all three countries have provided moderate leadership in the Arab world, and support the global war on terrorism. He indicated that Algeria, in particular, has come a long way in recent years as new leaders have come to see the world differently than their predecessors⁴ did.

"Algeria, of course, was very active in the nonaligned group for many years, and then had a long battle with terrorism, and has been a very good partner and friend in the war on terror," he said.

The secretary noted⁵ that Algeria is participating later this year in a NATO counterterrorism operation in the Mediterranean⁶.

According to the deputy assistant secretary of defense for African Affairs, Theresa Whelan, that is typical of Algeria's active involvement in efforts to fight terrorism.

"The issue of terrorism really hits home for the Algerians, and I think they are trying to share their lessons learned with their neighbors so that their neighbors can avoid having similar problems in their countries," she said.

In a VOA interview, Whelan noted that Algeria participated in a U.S.-led counterterrorism training exercise in West Africa last year, and that it won the right to host the African Union's Counterterrorism Center of Excellence⁷, which will host its first conference soon.

"Algeria has really taken, I think, a very positive lead role in trying to address this issue and the issue of ungoverned space, both in their own context and also in the regional context," she said.

The United States has been particularly interested in training African armies to get control of those 'ungoverned' spaces, the vast, remote areas where terrorists can establish bases and easily cross international borders.

"We think one of the interesting things we have been doing in the last couple of years is trying to facilitate greater linkage⁸ between the North African states and their southern neighbors because there are a lot of issues that cross those borders," said Whelan.

Deputy Assistant Secretary Whelan says Algeria has been among the most active countries in taking advantage of funding and training from the Trans-Saharan Counterterrorism Initiative. The five-year, $500-million U.S. aid program for African countries is designed to help them build counterterrorist capabilities⁹ with better equipment, communications and tactics, and more cooperation with their neighbors.

Another senior U.S. official, who requested anonymity¹⁰, notes that Algeria has also increased other types of defense cooperation with the United States, establishing just last year a joint¹¹ military commission that will meet annually¹². Neighboring Tunisia has had such a relationship with the United States for 20 years.

The official also praised Algeria's leaders for being willing to take a position on terrorism that is not popular in many parts of the Arab world.

Donald Rumsfeld, right, speaks to his Tunisian counterpart, Kamel Morjane, left, in front of the Tunisian Defense Ministry¹³, Saturday
  
  
But the official says while the United States wants to continue to develop military relations with Algeria, it is also sensitive to the concerns of Tunisia and Morocco about any move that would make their powerful neighbor even more powerful. And the official says the United States wants to see political reform and improvements in the human rights situation in Algeria before it will be willing to expand military relations, particularly military sales, much further. For now, the official says such sales will be limited to equipment for counter-terrorism operations, such as specialized¹⁴ vehicles and night-vision goggles¹⁵.

1 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。

2 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。

3 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。

4 predecessors   

n.前任( predecessor的名词复数 )；前辈；（被取代的）原有事物；前身

参考例句：

• The new government set about dismantling their predecessors' legislation. 新政府正着手废除其前任所制定的法律。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Will new plan be any more acceptable than its predecessors? 新计划比原先的计划更能令人满意吗？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

7 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。

8 linkage   

n.连接；环节

参考例句：

• In their monographic treatment of linkage,they have emphasized this especially.他们在论连锁的专题文章中特别强调了这点。
• Occasionally,problems with block inheritance or linkage are encountered.有时会遇到区段遗传或连锁问题。

9 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

10 anonymity   

n.the condition of being anonymous

参考例句：

• Names of people in the book were changed to preserve anonymity. 为了姓名保密，书中的人用的都是化名。
• Our company promises to preserve the anonymity of all its clients. 我们公司承诺不公开客户的姓名。

11 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

12 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

13 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

14 specialized   

adj.专门的，专业化的

参考例句：

• There are many specialized agencies in the United Nations.联合国有许多专门机构。
• These tools are very specialized.这些是专用工具。

15 goggles   

n.护目镜

参考例句：

• Skiers wear goggles to protect their eyes from the sun.滑雪者都戴上护目镜使眼睛不受阳光伤害。
• My swimming goggles keep steaming up so I can't see.我的护目镜一直有水雾，所以我看不见。