VOA常速英语2007年-US Secretary of State Makes Surprise Visit to I

By Deborah Block
Baghdad
18 December 2007

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice made a surprise visit to Iraq to meet with government leaders and the United Nation's new special envoy¹. VOA's Deborah Block reports from Baghdad that Rice's visit coincides with a reduction in violence in Iraq.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice urged Iraqi leaders to speed up national reconciliation².

Security in Iraq has improved due to the deployment³ of an extra 30,000 U.S. troops, a decision by Sunni Arab tribal⁴ leaders to move against al-Qaida, and a six-month ceasefire by Shi'ite cleric and militia⁵ leader Moqtada al-Sadr.

The secretary of state said it is time to take advantage of the situation.

"The surge that the president ordered as well as the efforts of Iraqi security forces and the efforts of concerned citizens and local efforts like the one that took place in Anbar have improved the security situation and they have given a kind of window in which political reconciliation needs to take place," she said.

The government of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al- Maliki has been frozen by deep divisions and mistrust among the leaders of Iraq's different religious sects⁶ and ethnic⁷ groups. It has made little headway in passing laws seen as vital to reconciliation.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the government will increase its political efforts.

"These gains are really very significant as we see them in the streets of Baghdad, in many provinces, this needs to be pressed on I think," he said. "We need a political and legislative⁸ surge, also you see, to augment⁹ and strengthen these gains. Also I reassured¹⁰ Secretary Rice about our continued effort to ensure a better regional cooperation."

Rice began her visit to Iraq in oil-rich Kirkuk, where the U.S. administration is emphasizing what it sees as new signs of cooperation and progress. But the city faces increasing violence, with Kurdish nationalists demanding it be included in their semi-autonomous region.

Rice also met with new U.N. Envoy to Iraq Steffan de Mistura, whose first task will be managing competing interests leading up to a  on Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq.

At a joint¹¹ news conference with Zebari, Rice suggested that Iraqi, Turkish and U.S. authorities should work together against the rebels.

"This is a circumstance in which the United States has constantly counseled that we need an overall, comprehensive approach to this problem," she said. "No one should do anything that threatens to destabilize the north."

The Iraqi government says the Turkish incursions are unacceptable. Foreign Minister Zebari said cooperation is needed to solve the rebel problem.

"We believe any unilateral actions to destabilize the situation will harm Iraqi interests and Turkey's interests," he said. "But at the same time we fully¹² understand and appreciate the legitimate¹³ security concern Turkey has over the PKK terrorist activities against them."

This is Rice's eighth visit to Iraq as secretary of state and her first since she accompanied President Bush to Anbar Province after the troop surge began earlier this year.

1 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

2 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

3 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

4 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

5 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

6 sects   

n.宗派，教派( sect的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Members of these sects are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed. 这些教派的成员遭到了残酷的迫害和镇压。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had subdued the religious sects, cleaned up Saigon. 他压服了宗教派别，刷新了西贡的面貌。 来自辞典例句

7 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

8 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

9 augment   

vt.(使)增大，增加，增长，扩张

参考例句：

• They hit upon another idea to augment their income.他们又想出一个增加收入的办法。
• The government's first concern was to augment the army and auxiliary forces.政府首先关心的是增强军队和辅助的力量。

10 reassured   

adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The captain's confidence during the storm reassured the passengers. 在风暴中船长的信念使旅客们恢复了信心。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• The doctor reassured the old lady. 医生叫那位老妇人放心。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。