VOA常速英语2007-Britain Receives Saudi Arabia's King

By Tom Rivers
London
31 October 2007

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia met Wednesday with Prime Minister Gordon Brown at 10 Downing Street as part of his state visit to Britain. The two discussed a variety of bilateral¹ issues. For VOA, Tom Rivers reports from London.

Britain widely views Saudi Arabia as its closest ally in the Middle East. It also acknowledges what it sees as human rights concerns in the Saudi kingdom. And therein lies the crux² of the controversy³ surrounding the state visit this week of King Abdullah to Britain, the first such trip here since King Fahd visited in 1987.

In their closed-door meeting Wednesday at the prime minister's official London residence, a spokesman for Gordon Brown said the British leader raised issues he believes appropriate, a delicate way of eluding⁴ to alleged⁵ human rights breaches⁶ in Saudi Arabia.

Protesters outside the Saudi embassy in London say they want Prime Minister Brown to publicly air concerns he may have about the issue.

British officials say, not for attribution, that the aging king is slowly bringing forth⁷ reforms in the world's largest oil producer.

For the record, Mr. Brown and King Abdullah discussed counter-terrorism, the Middle East, Iraq and Iran.

The British leader sees Saudi participation⁸ in a U.S.-sponsored Middle East peace conference, expected to take place in Annapolis, Maryland, as crucial.

Five years ago, the king came up with what was called the Arab Peace Initiative, a plan that calls on Arab states to make peace with Israel if it withdraws from all Palestinian territories occupied in 1967.

Britain also sees Saudi engagement on the Iranian nuclear issue as key. Prime Minister Brown believes Saudi Arabia should help build support in more countries for sanctions against Iran. The U.S., Britain and their allies believe Iran is seeking to build nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies.

In addition to the talks with the prime minister, King Abdullah is also meeting Prince Charles and David Cameron, the leader of the main opposition⁹ Conservative party. The king is also attending two banquets in his honor at Buckingham Palace.

King Abdullah and his entourage depart Britain on Thursday.

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 crux   

adj.十字形；难事，关键，最重要点

参考例句：

• The crux of the matter is how to comprehensively treat this trend.问题的关键是如何全面地看待这种趋势。
• The crux of the matter is that attitudes have changed.问题的要害是人们的态度转变了。

3 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

4 eluding   

v.（尤指机敏地）避开( elude的现在分词 )；逃避；躲避；使达不到

参考例句：

• He saw no way of eluding Featherstone's stupid demand. 费瑟斯通的愚蠢要求使他走投无路。 来自辞典例句
• The fox succeeded in eluding the hunters. 这狐狸成功地避过了猎手。 来自辞典例句

5 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

6 breaches   

破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背

参考例句：

• He imposed heavy penalties for breaches of oath or pledges. 他对违反誓言和保证的行为给予严厉的惩罚。
• This renders all breaches of morality before marriage very uncommon. 这样一来，婚前败坏道德的事就少见了。

7 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

8 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。

9 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。