2007年VOA标准英语-US Seeks Clarification of Reported Sudanese Con

By David Gollust
State Department
30 March 2007

The State Department says it is seeking clarification of reports Sudan has softened¹ its opposition² to new international peacekeepers for Darfur. The reported change of position by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir came as the Bush administration prepared new sanctions against the Khartoum government. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (file photo)

Officials here say U.S. diplomats³ will confer with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on talks he had at the Arab League Summit in Riyadh, in which Sudan is said to have eased its stand against allowing a new peacekeeping force in Darfur.

Sudan has long resisted deployment⁴ of a proposed "hybrid⁵" force of United Nations and African Union troops in Darfur to replace a hard-pressed AU observer mission there.

But Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal said at a summit news conference Thursday that Sudan had given the go-ahead for U.N. logistical support for African peacekeepers.

The development, which Prince Saud termed a breakthrough, came after the Sudanese president held a meeting on the sidelines of the Arab summit with the U.N. Secretary-General, Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa and Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki.

In a talk with reporters here, State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said reports from Riyadh are unclear about whether Sudan is ready to accept the hybrid force without conditions. 

He also said the Bush administration wants to hear directly from the U.N. chief before deciding how to proceed.

"It is fair to say that we want to understand from the Secretary-General what he heard," he said.  "Is there a change in view from the Sudanese? Is there something in their comments with which the international system can work? Now, I have to caution you that to this point the Sudanese have not given any indication, or any real public indication that they're dropping any preconditions, or that they're are ready to follow-up on the Addis Ababa agreement."

The Sudanese agreed in principle at an international conference in Addis Ababa last November to accept the hybrid force, mandated⁶ earlier by the U.N. Security Council.

But Khartoum has since blocked the admission of U.N. logistics teams, frustrating⁷ the United States and other supporters of expanded peacekeeping in Darfur.

The reported Sudanese concession⁸ came amid reports the Bush administration is only a few days away from announcing a package of new financial sanctions against the Khartoum government.

Spokesman McCormack said whether the sanctions go forward depends on an administration assessment⁹ of what he termed "the whole landscape," including the latest Sudanese comments, and whether they actually reflect a change in policy.

McCormack said in diplomatic contacts, the United States assured Sudanese officials the hybrid force would focus its activities in Darfur, and not function as what he termed a "posse," trying to round up alleged¹⁰ war criminals in Khartoum.

A month ago, the International Criminal Court at The Hague designated two men, a Sudanese deputy cabinet minister and a leader of the government-backed Janjaweed militia¹¹, as suspects in crimes against humanity in Darfur.

The announcement came after a 20-month investigation¹² by the court. The Darfur conflict, which erupted in 2003 is believed to have led to the deaths of over 200,000 people and driven more than 2 million others from their homes.

Much of the violence has been attributed to the Arab militiamen, who the Khartoum authorities enlisted¹³ to put down an uprising by local Darfur rebels.

1 softened   

（使）变软( soften的过去式和过去分词 )； 缓解打击； 缓和； 安慰

参考例句：

• His smile softened slightly. 他的微笑稍柔和了些。
• The ice cream softened and began to melt. 冰淇淋开始变软并开始融化。

2 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。

3 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 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。

5 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

6 mandated   

adj. 委托统治的

参考例句：

• Mandated desegregation of public schools. 命令解除公立学校中的种族隔离
• Britain was mandated to govern the former colony of German East Africa. 英国受权代管德国在东非的前殖民地。

7 frustrating   

adj.产生挫折的，使人沮丧的，令人泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的现在分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's frustrating to have to wait so long. 要等这么长时间，真令人懊恼。
• It was a demeaning and ultimately frustrating experience. 那是一次有失颜面并且令人沮丧至极的经历。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 concession   

n.让步，妥协；特许(权)

参考例句：

• We can not make heavy concession to the matter.我们在这个问题上不能过于让步。
• That is a great concession.这是很大的让步。

9 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

10 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

11 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。

12 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

13 enlisted   

adj.应募入伍的v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的过去式和过去分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• enlisted men and women 男兵和女兵
• He enlisted with the air force to fight against the enemy. 他应募加入空军对敌作战。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》