VOA标准英语2014--Washington Debates Terms of Bergdahl Release

 

Washington Debates Terms of Bergdahl Release

WASHINGTON — A U.S. Army sergeant¹ freed by the Taliban after nearly five years in captivity² is receiving medical attention in Germany before an expected reunion with his family in the United States. The Obama administration is responding to criticism from some lawmakers over the release of five detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in return for Bowe Bergdahl’s freedom.

Hours after Bowe Bergdahl’s release near the Afghan-Pakistan border, President Barack Obama shared a moment of joy with the sergeant’s parents, Bob and Jani.

“I know that I speak for all Americans when I say we cannot wait for the moment when you are reunited and your son, Bowe, is back in your arms,” said Obama.

Bowe Bergdahl’s mother then expressed her gratitude⁴.

“I just want to say thank you to everyone who has supported Bowe.  He has had a wonderful team everywhere.  We will continue to stay strong for Bowe while he recovers.”

But amid cheers, some criticize the price paid for Bergdahl’s freedom, and worry that dealing⁵ with the Taliban could embolden⁶ militants⁷ and put more Americans at risk.

Republican Senator Ted³ Cruz, speaking on ABC’s This Week program, was among those questioning the deal.

“I think it is very disturbing that we are releasing five acknowledged terrorist Taliban leaders in a deal with terrorists.  Sergeant Bergdahl was fighting to capture these terrorists.  Can you imagine what he would say to his fallen comrades who lost their lives to stop these people who were responsible, directly or indirectly⁸, for threatening or taking U.S. civilian⁹ lives?  I mean, that is why we sent our soldiers there (to Afghanistan),” said Cruz.

The Obama administration’s justification¹⁰ rests on a view that Sergeant Bergdahl was a prisoner of war, not a hostage.  National Security Advisor¹¹ Susan Rice said that the U.S. has a special responsibility to freeing those captured in battle.

“We have a sacred obligation that we have upheld since the founding of our republic to do our utmost to bring back our men and women who were taken in battle.  And we did that in this instance.  If for some reason we took a position now in the 21st century, when some of our adversaries¹² are not state actors, that we would not do our utmost to bring our prisoners of war home, that would break faith with the American people and with the men and women who serve in uniforms,” said Rice, also speaking on ABC’s This Week.

On a visit to Afghanistan, Defense¹³ Secretary Chuck Hagel echoed Rice's argument, and did not rule out the possibility of other breakthroughs with militants.

Last week, President Obama announced a small residual¹⁴ U.S. force will remain in Afghanistan next year if the country signs a bilateral¹⁵ security agreement with the United States.

1 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

2 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

3 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

4 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

5 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

6 embolden   

v.给…壮胆，鼓励

参考例句：

• Emboldened by the wine,he went over to introduce himself to her.他借酒壮胆，走上前去向她作自我介绍。
• The Prime Minister was steadily emboldened by the discovery that he faced no opposition.发现自己并未遭到反对，首相渐渐有了信心。

7 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。

8 indirectly   

adv.间接地，不直接了当地

参考例句：

• I heard the news indirectly.这消息我是间接听来的。
• They were approached indirectly through an intermediary.通过一位中间人，他们进行了间接接触。

9 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。

10 justification   

n.正当的理由；辩解的理由

参考例句：

• There's no justification for dividing the company into smaller units. 没有理由把公司划分成小单位。
• In the young there is a justification for this feeling. 在年轻人中有这种感觉是有理由的。

11 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

12 adversaries   

n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• That would cause potential adversaries to recoil from a challenge. 这会迫使潜在的敌人在挑战面前退缩。 来自辞典例句
• Every adversaries are more comfortable with a predictable, coherent America. 就连敌人也会因有可以预料的，始终一致的美国而感到舒服得多。 来自辞典例句

13 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。

14 residual   

adj.复播复映追加时间；存留下来的，剩余的

参考例句：

• There are still a few residual problems with the computer program.电脑程序还有一些残留问题。
• The resulting residual chromatism is known as secondary spectrum.所得到的剩余色差叫做二次光谱。

15 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。