VOA标准英语2010年-Obama, Medvedev Say They Have Reset US

U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev say they have succeeded in resetting¹ their countries' relationship, which had drifted in recent years.  The two leaders discussed trade and security at the White House Thursday, after going out for hamburgers.

Presidents Obama and Medvedev say the United States and Russia will broaden their cooperation on intelligence and counterterrorism, and have improved their economic ties.

Mr. Obama told reporters he and Mr. Medvedev have put their countries' relationship on a firmer footing, despite disagreeing about Russia's tensions with Georgia.

"Our two countries continue to disagree on certain issues, such as Georgia, and we addressed those differences candidly," he said. "But by moving forward in areas where we do agree, we have succeeded in resetting our relationship, which benefits regional and global security."

The president said he and his counterpart have moved beyond only discussing the issues covered in most previous U.S.-Russian meetings.

"Because 20 years after the end of the Cold War, the U.S.-Russian relationship has to be about more than just security and arms control," he said.  "It has to be about our shared prosperity, and what we can build together."

President Obama said he will speed discussions on Russia's entry into the World Trade Organization. 

U.S. support for Moscow's joining the WTO has come with conditions in the past.  But Mr. Obama says most of the differences have been resolved, and he believed the rest will be soon.

"Russia belongs in the WTO," he said.  "That is good for Russia, it is good for America, and it is good for the world economy."

Mr. Obama said a major hurdle² was cleared when Moscow agreed to lift a six-month ban on the sale of U.S. poultry³ in Russia.

Mr. Medvedev said he believes the obstacles to his country joining the WTO can be removed in the next few months.

"There are some remaining technical minor⁴ problems, and our teams have been instructed to work as fast as possible," he said.  "We hope, and we have stated this, that their work will be finalized⁵ by the end of September this year."

President Obama said his replacement⁶ of his top commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, with General David Petraeus will not slow U.S. efforts to win the Afghan war.  He said Petraeus helped to shape the U.S. strategy there.

Mr. Medvedev was asked whether he had given Mr. Obama advice on Afghanistan, which the former Soviet⁷ Union had invaded in 1979 with disastrous⁸ results.  He said he supports the U.S.-led invasion if it can lead to a better life in Afghanistan.

"Having an effective state and a modern economy, which requires toiling⁹ more than a year," the Russian president.  "But this is the path to guarantee that the gravest scenarios¹⁰ of the last time will not repeat.

Mr. Obama said he and Mr. Medvedev agreed to coordinate¹¹ humanitarian¹² aid to Kyrgyzstan, where about 2,000 people have died in violence after the president was removed from power.

This was the seventh meeting between the two leaders, who will go to Toronto, Canada for the G20 economic summit, which begins Friday.

After their meetings at the White House, Mr. Obama took his Russian visitor to lunch at a hamburger restaurant near Washington.  Mr. Medvedev said the beef-and-cheese sandwiches were probably not very healthy, but quite tasty, and part of the spirit of America.

 

1 resetting   

v.重新安放或安置( reset的现在分词 )；重拨（测量仪器指针）；为（考试、测试等）出一套新题；重新安置，将…恢复原位

参考例句：

• Range represents the maximum strain which can be recorded without resetting or replacing the strain gage. 量程表示无需重调或重装应变计就能记录到的最大应变。 来自辞典例句
• Adding weight to the puddle jumper by resetting its inertial dampeners. 通过调节飞船的惯性装置来增加重量。 来自电影对白

2 hurdle   

n.跳栏，栏架；障碍，困难；vi.进行跨栏赛

参考例句：

• The weather will be the biggest hurdle so I have to be ready.天气将会是最大的障碍，所以我必须要作好准备。
• She clocked 11.6 seconds for the 80 metre hurdle.八十米跳栏赛跑她跑了十一秒六。

3 poultry   

n.家禽，禽肉

参考例句：

• There is not much poultry in the shops. 商店里禽肉不太多。
• What do you feed the poultry on? 你们用什么饲料喂养家禽?

4 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

5 finalized   

vt.完成（finalize的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The draft of this article has been finalized [done]. 这篇文章已经定稿。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The draft was revised several times before it was finalized. 稿子几经删改才定下来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 replacement   

n.取代，替换，交换；替代品，代用品

参考例句：

• We are hard put to find a replacement for our assistant.我们很难找到一个人来代替我们的助手。
• They put all the students through the replacement examination.他们让所有的学生参加分班考试。

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 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。

9 toiling   

长时间或辛苦地工作( toil的现在分词 )； 艰难缓慢地移动，跋涉

参考例句：

• The fiery orator contrasted the idle rich with the toiling working classes. 这位激昂的演说家把无所事事的富人同终日辛劳的工人阶级进行了对比。
• She felt like a beetle toiling in the dust. She was filled with repulsion. 她觉得自己像只甲虫在地里挣扎，心中涌满愤恨。

10 scenarios   

n.[意]情节；剧本；事态；脚本

参考例句：

• Further, graphite cores may be safer than non-graphite cores under some accident scenarios. 再者，根据一些事故解说，石墨堆芯可比非石墨堆芯更安全一些。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Again, scenarios should make it clear which modes are acceptable to users in various contexts. 同样，我们可以运用场景剧本来搞清楚在不同情境下哪些模式可被用户接受。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

11 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

12 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。