2007年VOA标准英语-UN General Assembly Elects Macedonian as Presid

By Peter Heinlein
United Nations
24 May 2007

The United Nations General Assembly has elected former Macedonian foreign minister Srgjan Kerim as its president.  He will take over when the 62nd session begins in September. From U.N. headquarters, VOA's Peter Heinlein reports the president-elect played down expectations for radical¹ change of the 192-member body.

Srgjan Kerim meeting with Kofi Annan (file photo)

The election was by consensus², in the world body's tradition.

In an acceptance speech to the assembly Thursday, Kerim pledged to help promote effective multilateralism to tackle global issues.

However, speaking to reporters afterward³, he cautioned not to expect dramatic change in an organization where members often have conflicting views.

On issues such as expanding the 15-member Security Council, he said his goal will be simply to "push the stone forward".

"You know this organization started with 11, then to move to 15 it took years and years," he said.  "So now we are discussing it 16 or 18 years.  There is no magic stick of the president or of the secretary-general, which can make things go or stop them. I don't think that it is a problem of the organization always, and that it is inherent in the United Nations that they are not efficient by definition, by default. No, it is sometimes the lack of political will of the states."

Kerim served as Macedonia's foreign minister in 2000 and 2001, and was later ambassador to the United Nations. He is currently manager of a German-owned media company.

Because of a dispute with neighboring Greece, the country is known officially at the U.N. as The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. It is listed alphabetically⁴ among the 192-member countries under "T", for "The."

While many nations refer to it as simply "Macedonia," but Greece objects, arguing this amounts to a territorial⁵ claim on Greece's northern province of the same name.

When asked by a reporter about the name dispute, the General Assembly president-elect diplomatically avoided the issue.

"As you know, on that very issue, the secretary-general has his envoy⁶," he said.  "The envoy is in charge of it. The two governments, the government of Macedonia and the government of Greece, they are negotiating, talking about it, and I would leave it to them.   The president of the General Assembly and the General Assembly should not interfere⁷ in that process."

Kerim assumes the General Assembly presidency⁸ September 18, when the next session convenes⁹. His term runs for one year. He will succeed the current president Sheikha Haya Rashed al-Khalifa of Bahrain.

1 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

2 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

3 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

4 alphabetically   

adv.照字母顺序排列地

参考例句：

• I've arranged the books alphabetically so don't muddle them up. 我已按字母顺序把这些书整理了，千万不要再弄乱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They are all filed alphabetically under author. 这些都是按照作者姓名的字母顺序归档的。 来自辞典例句

5 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

6 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。

7 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

8 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

9 convenes   

召开( convene的第三人称单数 )； 召集； （为正式会议而）聚集； 集合

参考例句：

• The Premier convenes and presides over the executive meetings and plenary meetings of the State Council. 总理召集和主持国务院常务会议和国务院全体会议。 来自汉英非文学 - 中国宪法
• Chinese woman tenth the National People Congress convenes grandly today in Beijing. 中国妇女第十次全国代表大会今天在北京隆重召开。