2007年VOA标准英语-Bush Confident Pakistan Will Target Al-Qaida

By Scott Stearns
White House
09 August 2007

U.S. President George Bush says he is confident that Pakistan's President General Pervez Musharraf has both the desire and the ability to hunt down al-Qaida terrorists along the border with Afghanistan. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns has the story.

President George W. Bush speaks during news conference, 09 Aug 2007

President Bush says he is confident that Pakistani and U.S. intelligence officials will come up with a plan to bring top al-Qaida terrorists to justice.

He says he and President Musharraf share a common enemy in Islamic militants¹.

"I have made it clear to him that I expect there to be full cooperation in sharing intelligence, and I believe we have got good intelligence sharing. I have indicated to him that the American people would expect there to be swift action taken if there is actionable intelligence on high-value targets in his country," Mr. Bush said.

President Musharraf is a crucial ally in the fight against al-Qaida and has come under increasing U.S. pressure to do more to crackdown on terrorists following an American threat assessment² that concludes al-Qaida has rebuilt much of its operational capacity in remote areas of Pakistan near the Afghan border.

There is also mounting domestic pressure on Mr. Musharraf following his failed attempt to sack the country's chief justice and an army raid on a mosque³ that left more than 100 people dead.

President Musharraf's decision Wednesday to pull out of a meeting with more than 600 Pakistani and Afghan tribal⁴ leaders prompted speculation⁵ that he was considering a state of emergency which could delay upcoming elections.

Pakistani Information Minister Mohammed Ali Durrani says President Musharraf has decided⁶ against imposing⁷ emergency rule.

Speaking to reporters at the White House, President Bush said he continues to encourage the Pakistani leader to hold free elections.

"My focus in terms of the domestic scene there is that he have a free and fair election, and that is what we have been talking to him about, and I am hopeful they will," he said.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned President Musharraf Wednesday following reports of a possible state of emergency. American officials would not discuss the details of that conversation.

1 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

2 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？

3 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

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 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

6 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。

7 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。