VOA标准英语2008年-US Says Iran's Nuclear Program Could Produce Di

By Meredith Buel
Washington
30 May 2008
 

U.S. National Security Advisor¹ Stephen Hadley says the world cannot let down future generations by allowing Iran to develop a nuclear bomb, saying such a development would be a disaster for the Middle East and the rest of the planet. Critics of the administration's policy are arguing for negotiations² with the government in Tehran. VOA correspondent Meredith Buel reports from Washington.

Iranian officials, earlier this year, toured a nuclear facility and told diplomats³ Iran's nuclear program is meant for generating civilian⁴ energy.

The United States and its European allies accuse Iran of using its uranium enrichment program to make nuclear weapons.

And U.S. National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, in Washington, said the world cannot allow Iran to use negotiations to stall for time, hedge its bets and keep open a route to a nuclear weapon.

"If there is one thing I hope we can all agree on, it is that a nuclear-armed Iran would be disastrous⁵ for the peace of the Middle East and the world," Hadley said.

Speaking to representatives of more than 80 nations that have endorsed⁶ global non-proliferation efforts, Hadley said that much has changed since the Cold War when the nuclear weapons built by the former Soviet⁷ Union dominated America's national security perspective.

Hadley says the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States shattered the idea after the Cold War that global security faced no serious challenges.

And so the national security advisor said Iran must not be allowed to build a nuclear bomb.

Hadley says, "We will not betray future generations by allowing Iran to have a nuclear weapon. Iran is a particular worry since it is both a potential proliferator⁸ and an active state sponsor of terror and thus a potential route of WMD for terrorist groups."

While Hadley says the U.S. and its Western partners will continue to pressure Iran with diplomatic isolation⁹ and United Nations sanctions, he says the door is open for a negotiated solution.

The United States and other major nations have offered incentives¹⁰ to Iran to scrap¹¹ the enrichment program and Hadley says diplomatic work will continue to find a peaceful solution.

Former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski argues that current U.S. policy, which raises the possibility of using military force, will almost certainly lead to an Iran with nuclear weapons.

"A policy in which the impression is created that America is trying to impose its will on Iran is a policy which intensifies¹² Iranian insecurity, makes it less likely to compromise and increases the importance of eventually having nuclear weapons as a deterrent¹³, as a means of self-defense," Brzezinski said.

Brzezinski says negotiations would lead to better relations between the two countries and could improve efforts to promote democracy inside Iran. "If the relationship between the United States and Iran is hostile, the scope for freedom narrows," Brzezinski said. "If it becomes more relaxed, we know this from history with other countries, the scope for freedom enlarges."

Brzezinski argues for a broader and more flexible approach to Iran. He says that would increase the prospects¹⁴ for an international arrangement that could allow Iran a nuclear energy program. He says it would also minimize the possibility of it rapidly transforming into a weapons program.

1 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

2 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

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 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 disastrous   

adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的

参考例句：

• The heavy rainstorm caused a disastrous flood.暴雨成灾。
• Her investment had disastrous consequences.She lost everything she owned.她的投资结果很惨，血本无归。

6 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

8 proliferator   

[医]增殖子

参考例句：

• Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) are a family of at least 3 nuclear receptors (a, 8, andy). 其中PPARγ在心脏中表达丰富，胰岛素增敏剂噻唑烷二酮类药物是PPARγ的合成配体。
• Rosiglitazone belongs to a class of drugs known as peroxisome proliferator-actiated receptor (PPAR) agonists. 罗格列酮属于称为过氧化物酶体活化受体(PPAR)促效剂一类药物。

9 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

10 incentives   

激励某人做某事的事物( incentive的名词复数 )； 刺激； 诱因； 动机

参考例句：

• tax incentives to encourage savings 鼓励储蓄的税收措施
• Furthermore, subsidies provide incentives only for investments in equipment. 更有甚者，提供津贴仅是为鼓励增添设备的投资。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

11 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

12 intensifies   

n.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的名词复数 )v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A clear atmosphere intensifies the blue of the sky. 纯净的空气使天空变得更蓝。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Blowing on fire intensifies the heat. 吹火使热度加强。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 deterrent   

n.阻碍物，制止物；adj.威慑的，遏制的

参考例句：

• Large fines act as a deterrent to motorists.高额罚款是对开车的人的制约。
• I put a net over my strawberries as a deterrent to the birds.我在草莓上罩了网，免得鸟歇上去。

14 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。