VOA标准英语2011--Obama's Pledge of Aid Welcomed in Mideas

Obama's Pledge of Aid Welcomed in Mideast, Politics Less So

Reaction to President Barack Obama's speech on the Middle East has prompted some initial mixed reactions in Egypt. While plans for economic and development aid are being welcomed, hopes for a more consistent stand on regional unrest and a new approach to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict were largely dashed.
The promise of aid, in the form of debt relief and loan guarantees, is helping¹ allay² some fears in Egypt and Tunisia. Popular uprisings in the two nations succeeded in toppling the old governments, but at a cost.
"The economic situation has become very dire³, particularly on the financial front. There is a big financing gap and this needs to be closed right away. So I think any amount of money and any opportunity to have access to cash would help this situation immensely," said Magda Kandil, director of the Egyptian Center for Economic Studies.
Both Tunisia and Egypt have been hard hit by a drop in tourist revenue. In Egypt, remittance⁴ earnings⁵ are down after more than a million of its workers fled the conflict in neighboring Libya. General uncertainty⁶ has kept foreign investment at bay and led to hoarding⁷ of key commodities at home - all elements that put the chances of a peaceful transition at risk.
Economist⁸ Kandil says that the way the economic assistance has been structured will help. "I think the beauty about the debt forgiveness is that it starts in the form of debt swap⁹, which means that the money will not be just loose cash that the government can do whatever it wants to do with it," he said.
She is encouraged that some of the money is slotted for development projects, a key issue, she argues, at this juncture¹⁰.
The economic part of Mr. Obama's speech appears to be the one aspect that will resonate strongly in the weeks and months to come.
The rest, according to Egyptian publisher and long-time democracy advocate Hisham Kassem, was a profound disappointment.
"He [Obama] reiterated¹¹ double standards while trying to package it as a support for freedom. But we saw how he made clear that [Libyan leader] Moammar Gadhafi has to leave, and then referring to the actions of the government of Bahrain as 'the rule of law,' enforcing the rule of law - that was the bottom line - no. No, no," Kassen said.
Kassem argues that the unevenness¹² of Mr. Obama's approach to the region extends to Saudi Arabia - like Bahrain, a key ally and a fierce suppressor of government opponents - which the president did not mention at all.
As for the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, there was hope that the U.S. leader would seize this period of dramatic change to take an equally dramatic new approach to the peace process. Washington had tried to dampen such expectations, but again, some sense a missed opportunity.
Publisher Kassem says he had hoped that in the political part of the speech, Mr. Obama would offer something tangible¹³, whether on peace talks, or a tougher stand on Syria.? He recalls an earlier effort by the president to reach out to the region, during a 2009 address in Cairo.
"I personally, at the time, in spite of a lot of optimism, thought he said nothing, had no time frames, no concrete plans for anything. And it turned out to be true. And now he's doing more of the same, almost two years later," Kassen said.
The question now may be how much that argument will even matter. The uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East began, as Mr. Obama noted¹⁴, without U.S. political help. The economic aid, however, could ensure that the successful ones can carry through.

1 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

2 allay   

v.消除，减轻(恐惧、怀疑等)

参考例句：

• The police tried to allay her fears but failed.警察力图减轻她的恐惧，但是没有收到什么效果。
• They are trying to allay public fears about the spread of the disease.他们正竭力减轻公众对这种疾病传播的恐惧。

3 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

4 remittance   

n.汇款，寄款，汇兑

参考例句：

• Your last month's salary will be paid by remittance.最后一个月的薪水将通过汇寄的方式付给你。
• A prompt remittance would be appreciated.速寄汇款不胜感激。

5 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。

6 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

7 hoarding   

n.贮藏；积蓄；临时围墙；囤积v.积蓄并储藏（某物）( hoard的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• After the war, they were shot for hoarding. 战后他们因囤积而被枪决。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Actually he had two unused ones which he was hoarding up. 其实他还藏了两片没有用呢。 来自英汉文学

8 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

9 swap   

n.交换；vt.交换，用...作交易

参考例句：

• I will swap you my bicycle for your radio.我想拿我的自行车换你的收音机。
• This comic was a swap that I got from Nick.这本漫画书是我从尼克那里换来的。

10 juncture   

n.时刻，关键时刻，紧要关头

参考例句：

• The project is situated at the juncture of the new and old urban districts.该项目位于新老城区交界处。
• It is very difficult at this juncture to predict the company's future.此时很难预料公司的前景。

11 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

12 unevenness   

n. 不平坦，不平衡，不匀性

参考例句：

• This unevenness comes about because topics are developed in a logical order. 所以出现这种不平衡，是因为课题是按逻辑顺序展开的。
• I sanded the corners to take away any unevenness in the joints. 我用砂纸磨边边角角的地方，去除接头处的不均。

13 tangible   

adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的

参考例句：

• The policy has not yet brought any tangible benefits.这项政策还没有带来任何实质性的好处。
• There is no tangible proof.没有确凿的证据。

14 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。