VOA标准英语2012--G8 Summit Ends with Consensus on Eurozone Reforms

 

G8 Summit Ends with Consensus¹ on Eurozone Reforms

After two days of talks at the Camp David presidential retreat outside Washington, Obama said the eight leaders acknowledge that budget cuts alone will not restore Europe’s economy.

“And there is now an emerging consensus that more must be done to promote growth and job creation right now, in the context of these fiscal² and structural³ reforms,” the president said.

A statement from the G8 leaders called for a balance between growth and austerity to fight the economic woes⁴.

Obama said the leaders discussed the need for the troubled European countries to continue shrinking their deficits⁵ while stimulating⁶ economic growth.

“Today we agreed that we must take steps to boost confidence and to promote growth and demand while getting our fiscal houses in order," he said. "We agreed upon the importance of a strong and cohesive⁷ Eurozone, and affirmed our interest in Greece staying in the Eurozone while respecting its commitments.”

Political impact 

The decisions the leaders make could have political consequences. 

The main advocate of European austerity, German Chancellor⁸ Angela Merkel, recently saw her party defeated in a local election.

Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who also favored budget cuts, was voted out of office, in favor of Francois Hollande, who offered a pro-growth policy.

Many U.S. political analysts⁹ say a stagnant¹⁰ economy, blamed partly on Europe’s economic woes, is the biggest obstacle to Obama’s re-election in November.

“The leaders here understand the stakes," Obama noted¹¹. "They know the magnitude of the choices they have to make, and the enormous political, economic and social costs if they do not.”

Iran

The G8 leaders also addressed the possibility of oil shortages when new sanctions against Iran’s oil exports take effect late next month.

“And in the face of increasing disruptions in the supply of oil, we agreed that we must closely monitor global energy markets," Obama said. "Together, we stand ready to call upon the International Energy Agency to take action to ensure that the market remains¹² fully¹³ and timely supplied.”

Africa

The president hosted a meeting of the G8 leaders and the leaders of Benin, Ethiopia, Ghana and Tanzania to help improve food security in Africa.

Obama said the G8 is committed to building on its 2009 initiative that led to $22 billion in government pledges.

The president said he and his G8 counterparts made progress on numerous other international issues. Among them were Afghanistan, Syria and North Korea.

Most of the leaders have moved on to President Obama’s home city of Chicago for the NATO Summit.

1 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

2 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

3 structural   

adj.构造的，组织的，建筑（用）的

参考例句：

• The storm caused no structural damage.风暴没有造成建筑结构方面的破坏。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities.北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

4 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

5 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

6 stimulating   

adj.有启发性的，能激发人思考的

参考例句：

• shower gel containing plant extracts that have a stimulating effect on the skin 含有对皮肤有益的植物精华的沐浴凝胶
• This is a drug for stimulating nerves. 这是一种兴奋剂。

7 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。

8 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

9 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

10 stagnant   

adj.不流动的，停滞的，不景气的

参考例句：

• Due to low investment,industrial output has remained stagnant.由于投资少，工业生产一直停滞不前。
• Their national economy is stagnant.他们的国家经济停滞不前。

11 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。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。