意大利贝尔萨尼和贝卢斯科尼会谈总统选举

 　　ROME, April 9 (Xinhua) -- Talks between Italy's center-left party head Pier¹ Luigi Bersani and center-right counterpart Silvio Berlusconi about the candidate for the next president and other issues will continue after their first meeting held on Tuesday.

　　"It was a good meeting to clarify the criteria² for identifying together a list of persons who can represent the country's unity," Deputy Secretary of Bersani's Democratic Party (PD) Enrico Letta said after the meeting.

　　Though the talks between PD and Berlusconi's People of Freedom (PdL) were "just at the beginning," they were fundamental at a time of great divisions to share a "strong responsibility" over the president's choice, he said.

　　"It is necessary to make all attempts to have a president elected with a broad consensus³... I think there will be more meetings with PdL," Letta added.

　　PdL Secretary Angelino Alfano shared the view that there will be other talks between the two strongest forces and longstanding opponents in parliament "to make every effort to ensure sharing over a choice so delicate and important."

　　Alfano said in a statement that Berlusconi has reiterated⁴ his willingness to do "what is useful to Italy" and the next president must be a person of "unquestionable prestige and recognized institutional competence⁵." However no names were put forth⁶ during the meeting, he noted⁷.

　　President Giorgio Napolitano, 87, whose seven-year term ends on May 15, has been struggling to end the impasse⁸ in the formation of Italy's new government after the Feb. 24-25 inconclusive elections.

　　Italian presidents, whose role is mostly ceremonial but includes powers such as naming the premier⁹, are not allowed to dissolve parliament in the final months of their mandate¹⁰. Napolitano has ruled out an early resignation that would allow his successor to call for fresh general voting.

　　The new president will be elected by parliament in a joint¹¹ session starting from April 18. A two-third vote is required on any of the first three rounds of balloting¹², after which a majority suffices.

　　The meeting came after Napolitano suggested that political parties should have the "courage" to reach an alliance for the good of the recession-hit country.

　　The remarks followed Bersani's reiterated refusal to consider a broad coalition¹³ with Berlusconi who had offered his support in return, among other issues, for selecting the next president.

1 pier   

n.码头；桥墩，桥柱；[建]窗间壁，支柱

参考例句：

• The pier of the bridge has been so badly damaged that experts worry it is unable to bear weight.这座桥的桥桩破损厉害，专家担心它已不能负重。
• The ship was making towards the pier.船正驶向码头。

2 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。

3 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？

4 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。

5 competence   

n.能力，胜任，称职

参考例句：

• This mess is a poor reflection on his competence.这种混乱情况说明他难当此任。
• These are matters within the competence of the court.这些是法院权限以内的事。

6 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

7 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。

8 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

9 premier   

adj.首要的；n.总理，首相

参考例句：

• The Irish Premier is paying an official visit to Britain.爱尔兰总理正在对英国进行正式访问。
• He requested that the premier grant him an internview.他要求那位总理接见他一次。

10 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

11 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

12 balloting   

v.（使）投票表决( ballot的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Clark took a commanding leading in the early balloting. 在最初投票时，克拉克遥遥领先。 来自辞典例句
• The balloting had stagnated, he couldn't win. 投票工作陷于停顿，他不能得胜。 来自辞典例句

13 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。