VOA标准英语2008年-Donors Pledge Nearly $16 Billion for Afghanista

By Sonja Pace
London
12 June 2008

International donors² pledged more than $15.5 billion in aid for Afghanistan during a one-day meeting Paris. Western leaders and experts have repeatedly argued that Afghanistan needs more NATO troops to fight the Taliban and track down remnants of al-Qaida and long-term economic aid to put it on a more solid footing toward development. VOA's Sonja Pace reports from London.
　

French President Nicolas Sarkozy, right, with Afghan President Hamid Karzai, at the opening of the Afghanistan donors conference, in Paris, 12 Jun 2008

Addressing the gathering³ in Paris, Afghan President Hamid Karzai appealed for massive long-term aid to his country, and donors responded with pledges and strong words of support.

There is widespread international agreement that much is at stake in Afghanistan.

Speaking in the House of Commons in London, opposition⁴ leader David Cameron of the Conservative Party, labeled Afghanistan the "number-one foreign policy and security priority" for Britain.

"It is clear why we are there, that if we go the Taliban come back, the training camps come back and there will be more terrorists on British streets," he said.

But, Cameron questioned just how much progress has been made since the ouster of the Taliban in 2001.

In the parliamentary exchange, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said prevailing⁵ in Afghanistan will be a long-haul effort, but he insisted there has been progress.

"In Afghanistan, we are making progress in training the Afghan army in training the police of Afghanistan and in putting economic and social development in the country, which means the people of Afghanistan have a stake in the future," he said.

There have been persistent⁶ reports, however, about deteriorating⁷ security in many parts of Afghanistan, rampant⁸ corruption⁹, a resurgence¹⁰ of warlords in parts of the country and a resurgence of the Taliban.

Experts say the international community needs to provide more troops to fight insurgents¹¹ and must have a more cohesive¹² long-term strategy for economic development.

The United States has been critical of its allies for not sending more troops and often not sending them to where they are most needed.


The United States has several-thousand ground troops in Afghanistan on anti-terrorism operations, mainly in the southern parts of the country. It also has about 16,000 troops operating within the NATO force of more than 40,000. There is widespread agreement that providing security in Afghanistan is crucial to future development. But, in an interview with VOA in London with Persian Service reporter Nazenin Ansari, former British Foreign Secretary, David Owen, cautions against pinning too much hope on military success.

"If we think we are going to get military victory then forget it. If we are there to give a little more time, to try to do more reconstruction¹³, which we have given nowhere near enough priority to and to stabilize¹⁴ a solution - OK. But, victory in the military sense - not a prayer," said Owen.

In the past seven years the international community has pledged about $25 billion, but aid agencies say only around $15 billion has been spent.

Corruption is widely blamed for hindering the distribution of aid to where it would be most effective. But, a report released several months ago by a group of aid agencies said donors are failing to deliver on their pledges and that much of the aid money delivered often goes back to donor¹ countries in the form of consultant¹⁵ payments, foreign-staff salaries and goods purchased.

1 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

2 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 prevailing   

adj.盛行的；占优势的；主要的

参考例句：

• She wears a fashionable hair style prevailing in the city.她的发型是这个城市流行的款式。
• This reflects attitudes and values prevailing in society.这反映了社会上盛行的态度和价值观。

6 persistent   

adj.坚持不懈的，执意的；持续的

参考例句：

• Albert had a persistent headache that lasted for three days.艾伯特连续头痛了三天。
• She felt embarrassed by his persistent attentions.他不时地向她大献殷勤，使她很难为情。

7 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

8 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

9 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

10 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

11 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

12 cohesive   

adj.有粘着力的；有结合力的；凝聚性的

参考例句：

• She sealed the parcel with cohesive tape.她用粘胶带把包裹封起来。
• The author skillfully fuses these fragments into a cohesive whole.作者将这些片断巧妙地结合成一个连贯的整体。

13 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

14 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

15 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。