VOA常速英语2008年-US Rejects Any Kosovo Partition

By David Gollust
State Department
29 February 2008

A senior Bush administration official Thursday rejected the partition of newly-independent Kosovo in any form. Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns says the United States and European allies are supporting Kosovo independence in the interest of a stable Balkans. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.

Burns has joined the European Union's new special envoy¹ for Kosovo, Pieter Feith, in flatly rejecting any partition of the former Serb province, while also faulting Serbia's case for retaining the area.

The United States and European partners recognized the majority ethnic²-Albanian region's independence declaration last week, while also pledging steps to assure the rights of its Serb minority.

Ethnic Serbs in the northern part of Kosovo and some hardline political figures in Serbia say Belgrade should continue to run the affairs of the Kosovar Serbs in one form or another.

But in remarks to foreign reporters in Washington, reflecting Vienna comments earlier Thursday by EU diplomat³ Feith, Burns said the United States will not tolerate or support any move toward partition be it informal, creeping or de jure.

At the same time, Burns was sharply critical of Serbia's case against Kosovo independence as expressed by Serbian Foreign Minister Vuk Jeremic, who said in a New York Times commentary Wednesday a historical injustice⁴ is being imposed on his country.

Burns, the State Department's third-ranking official, said the argument of Jeremic and others is hypocritical and overlooks Serbia's brutal⁵ record in Kosovo:

"They can't forget the history of what happened in the Balkans in the 1990s," said Burns. "And it really is quite curious to see this continued, I must say, invective⁶ from the government in Belgrade about what's happening in Kosovo, when their predecessor⁷ government, in the name of the country, marched into Kosovo in 1999 and tried to drive a million Kosovar Albanian muslims out of the country, or what happened of course in Bosnia a few years earlier."

In the New York Times article, Jeremic - whose government had offered Kosovo a large degree of autonomy - said Serbia is a victim of misplaced revenge by the international community.

Jeremic said recognizing Kosovo means punishing Serbia's new democracy for the acts of a tyrant⁸ - former Yugoslav leader Slobodan Milosevic - who he said committed "heinous⁹ deeds" against Kosovar Albanians.

Milosevic was overthrown¹⁰ in 2000 and died as a war crimes defendant¹¹ at The Hague two years ago.

Burns, who is due to retire in March, played a key role in U.S. Balkans policy in recent years.

He said the United States and key allies recognized Kosovo in the interest of Balkans stability, and expressed hope the new state will some day be in a position to seek EU and NATO membership.

Similarly, Burns said he hopes to see Serbia's ties with the United States and Europe continue to develop once passions over Kosovo cool.

In the meantime, he said the United States holds the Serbian government responsible for what happens on the streets of Belgrade, where Kosovo protesters firebombed the U.S. embassy and attacked several European missions last week.

Burns said Belgrade authorities have assured Washington there will be no repeat of those events, and that they will be held to that commitment.

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 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。

3 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

4 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

5 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

6 invective   

n.痛骂，恶意抨击

参考例句：

• He retorted the invective on her.他用恶言讽刺还击她。
• His command of irony and invective was said to be very classic and lethal.据说他嬉笑怒骂的本领是极其杰出的，令人无法招架的。

7 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

8 tyrant   

n.暴君，专制的君主，残暴的人

参考例句：

• The country was ruled by a despotic tyrant.该国处在一个专制暴君的统治之下。
• The tyrant was deaf to the entreaties of the slaves.暴君听不到奴隶们的哀鸣。

9 heinous   

adj.可憎的，十恶不赦的

参考例句：

• They admitted to the most heinous crimes.他们承认了极其恶劣的罪行。
• I do not want to meet that heinous person.我不想见那个十恶不赦的人。

10 overthrown   

adj. 打翻的，推倒的，倾覆的 动词overthrow的过去分词

参考例句：

• The president was overthrown in a military coup. 总统在军事政变中被赶下台。
• He has overthrown the basic standards of morality. 他已摒弃了基本的道德标准。

11 defendant   

n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的

参考例句：

• The judge rejected a bribe from the defendant's family.法官拒收被告家属的贿赂。
• The defendant was borne down by the weight of evidence.有力的证据使被告认输了。