VOA标准英语 Petraeus, Experts Warn of Challenges in Afghanistan

The head of the U.S. Central Command and former U.S. commander in Iraq, Army General David Petraeus, says progress in Afghanistan and Pakistan under President Barack Obama's new strategy will not be easy. General Petraeus, other military and Pentagon officials, and experts testified to congressional panels assessing prospects¹ in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
　
General Petraeus (file photo)

Referring to a "downward security spiral in key parts" of Afghanistan and Pakistan, Petraeus said disrupting and ultimately defeating al-Qaida and other extremist elements will require a sustained and substantial commitment.

As was the case in Iraq, he told the House Armed Services Committee, additional U.S. forces deploying² to Afghanistan at the order of President Obama will not by themselves be sufficient.

Petraeus said this will require a comprehensive counter-insurgency³ approach combined with steps to meet civilian⁴ requirements, while not alienating⁵ populations. "The additional forces will only be of value if they are employed properly. It is vital that they be seen as good guests and partners, not as would-be conquerors⁶ or superiors and as formidable warriors⁷ who also do all possible to avoid civilian casualties in the course of combat operations," he said.

General Petraeus said the United States will help Pakistan build its counterinsurgency capabilities⁸, and work to promote closer cooperation and coordination⁹ between Afghanistan and Pakistani forces with training, equipment, facilities and intelligence.

But while Pakistan has stepped up operations against militants¹⁰ and extremists, he said further work is needed. "Although there has been progress in some areas as Pakistan's newly reestablished democracy has evolved, significant security challenges have also emerged. The extremists that have established sanctuaries¹¹ in the rugged¹² border areas not only contribute to the deterioration¹³ of security in eastern and southern Afghanistan, they also pose an ever more serious threat to Pakistan's very existence," he said.

Navy Admiral Eric Olson, head of the U.S. Special Operations Command, described the situation as "increasingly dire," saying U.S. and allied¹⁴ forces must be prepared for a long campaign. "We know well that progress in Afghanistan and Pakistan will be neither quick nor easy. We as a nation and an international community must be prepared for an extended campaign, and one that must go well beyond traditional military activities," he said.

Under Secretary of Defense¹⁵ for Policy, Michele Flournoy, said the United States seeks a long-term strategic partnership¹⁶ with Pakistan, saying its ability to dismantle¹⁷ terrorist safe havens¹⁸ and defeat insurgent¹⁹ networks is "absolutely critical" to its security.

A long-term relationship with Afghanistan, she said, will involve counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency training, combating government corruption²⁰ and the narcotics²¹ trade, and addressing social-economic problems. "Combating corruption will be a critical part of our effort to reinforce Afghan institutions at all levels of the government. These efforts must also address the root causes of the insurgency, build accountability and give the Afghan people more reason to support and invest in their own government," she said.

House Armed Services Committee Chairman, Democrat²² Ike Skelton said that while the United States is committed to a consistent and long-term relationship with Pakistan and Afghanistan, Congress must closely monitor the impact of American assistance to both countries. "The Congress and the American people are being asked to put up a significant amount of resources over a sustained period so there must be accountability and there must be a measurable return on this investment," he said.

John McHugh, the ranking panel Republican suggested that Afghan military and police forces might have to be expanded beyond current goals. "In my opinion, I think we're going to have to go even beyond the current numbers and perhaps as much as double the previously²³ authorized²⁴ numbers for both the Afghan army and the police," he said.

The need for a civilian and military approach in Afghanistan and Pakistan was also a topic of expert testimony²⁵ to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

One witness, Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said President Obama's strategy has the elements for success, but that the United States and NATO lack clear plans for building "credible²⁶ Afghan security forces" and an effective national police force. "If we are to be successful by the summer of this year, we need to know what is happening, we need to see real progress, and we will need to be able to monitor it and see it more efficiently²⁷ in the course of these [coming] years," he said.

Karin van Hippel, also of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said success for President Obama's strategy will require persuading Afghans to support the government and international forces, while directing more aid to the people. "Only when Afghans view the struggle as a common one, that they are not fighting America's war, will they become full partners," he said.

Seth Jones of the RAND Corporation says the U.S. and NATO must do more to correct shortcomings in military and police training, and involve Afghans in counter-insurgent operation. But he says the allies must address more the complex nature of the insurgency. "Important chunks²⁸ of the motivation for fighting the Afghan government, the Americans and others is very locally-based. And that is important to realize because it means, in my view, that the solutions are not just about a central government. They are also about working with and understanding local dimensions," he said.

House and Senate hearings this week come as lawmakers prepare to receive the Obama administration's $75 billion supplemental request to fund military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, and work on regular defense appropriations²⁹ to support the president's strategy.

1 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。

2 deploying   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的现在分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Provides support for developing and deploying distributed, component-based applications. 为开发和部署基于组件的分布式应用程序提供支持。
• Advertisement, publishing, repair, and install-on-demand are all available when deploying your application. 在部署应用程序时提供公布、发布、修复和即需即装功能。

3 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

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 alienating   

v.使疏远( alienate的现在分词 )；使不友好；转让；让渡（财产等）

参考例句：

• The phenomena of alienation are widespread. Sports are also alienating. 异化现象普遍存在，体育运动也不例外。 来自互联网
• How can you appeal to them without alienating the mainstream crowd? 你是怎么在不疏忽主流玩家的情况下吸引住他们呢？ 来自互联网

6 conquerors   

征服者，占领者( conqueror的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Danes had selfconfidence of conquerors, and their security precautions were casual. 这些丹麦人具有征服者的自信，而且他们的安全防卫也是漫不经心的。
• The conquerors believed in crushing the defeated people into submission, knowing that they could not win their loyalty by the victory. 征服者们知道他们的胜利并不能赢得失败者的忠心，于是就认为只有通过武力才能将他们压服。

7 warriors   

武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I like reading the stories ofancient warriors. 我喜欢读有关古代武士的故事。
• The warriors speared the man to death. 武士们把那个男子戳死了。

8 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

9 coordination   

n.协调，协作

参考例句：

• Gymnastics is a sport that requires a considerable level of coordination.体操是一项需要高协调性的运动。
• The perfect coordination of the dancers and singers added a rhythmic charm to the performance.舞蹈演员和歌手们配合得很好，使演出更具魅力。

10 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。

11 sanctuaries   

n.避难所( sanctuary的名词复数 )；庇护；圣所；庇护所

参考例句：

• The designation of special marine reserves and marine sanctuaries shall be subject to the State Council for approval. 海洋特别保护区、海上自然保护区的确定，须经国务院批准。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After 1965 he acquiesced when they established sanctuaries on that soil. 1965年以后，他默认了他们在那块土地上建立庇护所。 来自辞典例句

12 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

13 deterioration   

n.退化；恶化；变坏

参考例句：

• Mental and physical deterioration both occur naturally with age. 随着年龄的增长，心智和体力自然衰退。
• The car's bodywork was already showing signs of deterioration. 这辆车的车身已经显示出了劣化迹象。

14 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

15 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。

16 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

17 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

18 havens   

n.港口，安全地方( haven的名词复数 )v.港口，安全地方( haven的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Your twenty havens would back out at the last minute anyhow. 你那二十个避难所到了最后一分钟也要不认帐。 来自辞典例句
• Using offshore havens to avoid taxes and investor protections. 使用海面的港口避免税和投资者保护。 来自互联网

19 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

20 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。

21 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 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。

23 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

24 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

25 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

26 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

27 efficiently   

adv.高效率地，有能力地

参考例句：

• The worker oils the machine to operate it more efficiently.工人给机器上油以使机器运转更有效。
• Local authorities have to learn to allocate resources efficiently.地方政府必须学会有效地分配资源。

28 chunks   

厚厚的一块( chunk的名词复数 )； （某物）相当大的数量或部分

参考例句：

• a tin of pineapple chunks 一罐菠萝块
• Those chunks of meat are rather large—could you chop them up a bIt'smaller? 这些肉块相当大，还能再切小一点吗？

29 appropriations   

n.挪用（appropriation的复数形式）

参考例句：

• More commonly, funding controls are imposed in the annual appropriations process. 更普遍的作法是，拨款控制被规定在年度拨款手续中。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• Should the president veto the appropriations bill, it goes back to Congress. 假如总统否决了这项拨款提案，就把它退还给国会。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件