VOA标准英语10月-US, Iraq Reach Draft Agreement on Status of US Fo

The Pentagon says U.S. and Iraqi negotiators have reached a draft agreement establishing the legal framework for U.S. troops to stay in Iraq after the United Nations authorization¹ expires at the end of the year. VOA's Al Pessin reports from the Pentagon.
　

Geoff Morrell answers a question on the status of Forces Agreement for U.S. forces in Iraq at the Pentagon, 16 Oct 2008

Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell says negotiators have reached a draft accord, which senior officials in both countries are now evaluating.

"This is, as I mentioned, not yet a final document," he said. "There is a draft that includes language that has been agreed upon by Iraqi and U.S. negotiators, but is of course still subject to the normal political process in both of our nations."

One of the main issues in dispute has been whether U.S. troops accused of crimes in Iraq would be tried by Iraqi courts, or by the U.S. military. Iraq has insisted on Iraqi jurisdiction², and the United States has been reluctant to agree. There are reports the negotiators agreed to allow Iraqi prosecution³ only for major crimes allegedly committed off duty.

Morrell would not confirm that, but said Defense⁴ Secretary Robert Gates is calling key members of Congress to tell them what is in the draft and ask for their support.

"I don't think the secretary would be making phone calls in support of the document if he didn't believe it adequately protected our forces in Iraq, in really all facets⁵ of their operations there, from combat to legal protections," said Morrell.

Morrell, points out that some of the dozens of similar agreements the United States has with countries around the world do allow for local prosecution of U.S. troops in some circumstances.

But the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Democrat⁶ Carl Levin, said Wednesday he is "skeptical⁷" of an agreement that would potentially subject U.S. service members to prosecution in Iraqi courts in the middle of a war in a country where, he says, the judicial⁸ system has not been "proven to be fair" and to protect defendants⁹' rights.

The Congress does not need to vote on this agreement, but Secretary Gates promised members he would consult with them before finalizing¹⁰ any agreement. In Iraq, the agreement must go through four levels of approval, ending with the parliament.

Geoff Morrell says the draft includes target dates for the withdrawal¹¹ of at least some of the 154,000 U.S. troops now in Iraq. He said Iraqi officials were firm in arguing to include such dates.

"Any withdrawal dates that are in this, and there are dates in this document, and I won't get into what those dates are, are entirely¹² conditions based," he said. "These are not ad hoc, willy nilly, arbitrary timelines. These are goals that we have agreed to that will only be followed if the conditions on the ground provide for it."

Morrell says nothing in the draft would commit the next U.S. president to any troop level or any security commitment for Iraq.

1 authorization   

n.授权，委任状

参考例句：

• Anglers are required to obtain prior authorization from the park keeper.垂钓者必须事先得到公园管理者的许可。
• You cannot take a day off without authorization.未经批准你不得休假。

2 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

3 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 facets   

n.（宝石或首饰的）小平面( facet的名词复数 )；（事物的）面；方面

参考例句：

• The question had many facets. 这个问题是多方面的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A fully cut brilliant diamond has 68 facets. 经过充分切刻的光彩夺目的钻石有68个小平面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

7 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

8 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

9 defendants   

被告( defendant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。
• As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

10 finalizing   

vt.完成（finalize的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• You may edit registered information any time during the finalizing period. 您可以在规定期限内随时编辑修改注册资料。 来自互联网
• Natsun Trimming & Ironing, Finalizing the Perfection. 40南山整烫，完美在此定格。 来自互联网

11 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

12 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。