The Iranian Threat

 

The United States remains¹ vigilant² to prevent Iran from gaining any new ground in the Middle East.

Speaking to the Israeli Knesset, Vice³ President Mike Pence said, “The United States will continue to work with Israel, and with nations across the world, to confront the leading state sponsor of terror -- the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

The regime in Iran is a brutal⁴ dictatorship that seeks to dominate its citizens and deny them their most fundamental rights. History has proven, those who dominate their own people rarely stop there, said Mr. Pence. “And increasingly, we see Iran seeking to dominate the wider Arab world.”

The Iranian regime sows chaos⁵ across the region. “Last year alone, even as its citizens cried out for help with basic necessities, Iran devoted⁶ more than $4 billion to malign⁷ activities in Syria, Lebanon, and elsewhere across the region. It has supported terrorist groups that even now sit on Israel's doorstep.

The U.S. is “working to enact⁸ effective and lasting⁹ restraints on Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs,” said Mr. Pence. “Earlier this month, the President waived¹⁰ sanctions on Iran to give the Congress and our European allies time to pass stronger measures. But as President Trump¹¹ made clear, this is the last time.”

The United States, vowed¹² Vice President Pence, “will never allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. Beyond the nuclear deal, we will also no longer tolerate Iran's support of terrorism, or its brutal attempts to suppress its own people.”

To the people of Iran, the U.S. has another message, declared Mr. Pence, “We are your friends, and the day is coming when you will be free from the evil regime that suffocates¹³ your dreams and buries your hopes. And when your day of liberation finally comes, we say to the good people of Iran, the friendship between our peoples will blossom once again.”

1 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。

2 vigilant   

adj.警觉的，警戒的，警惕的

参考例句：

• He has to learn how to remain vigilant through these long nights.他得学会如何在这漫长的黑夜里保持警觉。
• The dog kept a vigilant guard over the house.这只狗警醒地守护着这所房屋。

3 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

4 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

5 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

6 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

7 malign   

adj.有害的；恶性的；恶意的；v.诽谤，诬蔑

参考例句：

• It was easy to see why the cartoonists regularly portrayed him as a malign cherub.难怪漫画家总是把他画成一个邪恶的小天使。
• She likes to malign innocent persons.她爱诋毁那些清白的人。

8 enact   

vt.制定(法律)；上演，扮演

参考例句：

• The U.S. Congress has exclusive authority to enact federal legislation.美国国会是唯一有权颁布联邦法律的。
• For example,a country can enact laws and economic policies to attract foreign investment fairly quickly.例如一个国家可以很快颁布吸引外资的法令和经济政策。

9 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

10 waived   

v.宣布放弃( waive的过去式和过去分词 )；搁置；推迟；放弃（权利、要求等）

参考例句：

• He has waived all claim to the money. 他放弃了索取这笔钱的权利。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I waived the discourse, and began to talk of my business. 我撇开了这个话题，开始讲我的事情。 来自辞典例句

11 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

12 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

13 suffocates   

（使某人）窒息而死( suffocate的第三人称单数 )； （将某人）闷死； 让人感觉闷热； 憋气

参考例句：

• Greed suffocates humanity and intuitive knowledge. 贪婪可以灭绝人性和良知。
• The thick scent of aromatic plants tears at the throat and suffocates in the vast heat. 植物发散发出的浓郁香气在喉咙里撕裂，在炎热的天气下令人窒息。