美军舰在也门危机中仍有保留

 　　PENTAGON—U.S. military officials say the decision to strengthen their naval¹ presence in the Gulf² of Aden is designed to preserve options as Yemen’s security situation continues to worsen. They add that the presence of an Iranian convoy³ in waters near Yemen was "certainly one of the factors" that prompted the action.

　　The aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and the guided missile cruiser USS Normandy joined seven other U.S. warships⁴ in the region Monday.  Pentagon officials say an Iranian convoy of nine cargo⁵ ships is also in international waters in the Gulf of Aden, but that to their knowledge, the U.S. and Iranian ships have not yet seen each other or made any contact.

　　“What we see is a deteriorating⁶ security situation that could potentially result in a maritime⁷ threat,” said Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren.  “It's hard to predict the future, so what we need to have are options."

　　Pentagon: US Warships Preserving Options in Yemen Crisis

　　U.S. officials have raised concerns that the Iranian vessels⁸ could be trying to deliver weapons to Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have long had ties to Iran.  The White House says Iran has previously⁹ sent weapons to the Houthis, a charge Iran denies.

　　U.S. officials say whether the Iranian ships currently in the Gulf of Aden are carrying weapons is unclear, and the Pentagon Tuesday refused to definitely categorize them as a threat.

　　“They have not declared their intentions or what they're going to do,” Warren said. “But by having American sea power there, we're able to keep a very close eye on them.”

　　"We are going to continue to maintain freedom of navigation,” he said.

　　A senior military official official said that while it has been several weeks since the Yemen’s Houthi rebels last got arms from Tehran, the U.S. and its allies “have an interest in ensuring the Houthis don’t get any more weapons shipments.”

　　There have been concerns that the presence of U.S. and Iranian ships off the coast of Yemen - in an area already blockaded by Saudi Arabia, which late Tuesday announced the conclusion of a four-week air campaign against the Houthis - could lead to more strife¹⁰.

　　“I don’t see an imminent¹¹ conflict,” the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity¹² and playing down such concerns. “I don’t see an imminent confrontation¹³.”

　　At the White House Tuesday, when pressed by reporters as to what specifically prompted the United States to step up its military presence off Yemen, Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the U.S. continues to be concerned about broader political instability in the region.

　　“You essentially¹⁴ have a Yemeni central government that has been rendered pretty ineffective in terms of being able to provide for security off the waters of their coast. They are having a lot of trouble with their security situation in their country,” he said.

　　Earnest said the specific mandate¹⁵ and mission of the USS Theodore Roosevelt remains¹⁶ to ensure the free flow of navigation and commerce in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. He said the U.S. continues to be mindful of Iran’s destabilizing activity in the region, including sending weapons to the Houthis.

　　“A specific arms shipment from the Iranians intended for the Houthis would be a pretty clear violation¹⁷ of a United Nations Secuirty Council embargo¹⁸, no doubt about that,” said the White House spokesman. Earnest deflected¹⁹ questions, however, on whether the U.S. aircraft carrier had been deployed²⁰ to specifically discourage or intercept²¹ such an arms shipment.

　　Prior to sending a convoy of cargo ships to the Gulf of Aden, Iran earlier said it had sent two other ships to the area for anti-piracy operations.

　　A senior Houthi official Tuesday criticized the U.S. decision to send additional ships to the area.

　　"The goal of the movement of American ships is to strengthen the siege imposed on Yemen and put the Yemeni people under collective punishment," Houthi politburo member Mohammed al-Bukhaiti told Reuters.  "This step increases the level of their participation²² in this war."

　　The United Nations Security Council imposed an arms embargo on Houthi leaders last week.

　　U.S. Fifth Fleet spokesman Kevin Stephens said there are a number of steps the Navy could take if it has indications that weapons are on Iranian ships, including a simple request to come aboard.

　　In addition to the USS Theodore Roosevelt and the USS Normandy, the U.S. has seven other U.S. battleships in the area, including the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group, which includes a complement²³ of more than 2,000 U.S. Marines. There are also three U.S. resupply ships in the region.

　　Iran, meanwhile, is calling for an immediate²⁴ cease-fire in Yemen, where Houthi rebels have seized territory amid the Saudi-led campaign of airstrikes backing President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

　　Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said Tuesday the proposal, which calls for a halt in fighting, talks among the Yemeni parties and formation of an inclusive government, is the way to solve the country's crisis.

　　Saudi Arabia says it is stopping its Arab coalition²⁵ airstrikes on the Houthis in Yemen, but is not easing the pressure on the rebels.

　　Saudi officials said Tuesday after four weeks of bombings, the Houthis no longer pose a threat to Yemeni civilians²⁶ or other countries, including Saudi Arabia.

　　U.S. defense²⁷ officials said Tuesday that while some of the Saudi airstrikes had been very effective, they would welcome a cease-fire and are closely monitoring developments.

　　In other developments, the World Health Organization is warning of an imminent collapse²⁸ in Yemen's health-care services, due to increasing shortages of critical medicines and health materials, disruptions in power supplies and a lack of fuel for generators²⁹.

　　The United Nations says more than 600 people have been killed and about 100,000 people have been displaced by the conflict in Yemen.

1 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

2 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

3 convoy   

vt.护送，护卫，护航；n.护送；护送队

参考例句：

• The convoy was snowed up on the main road.护送队被大雪困在干路上了。
• Warships will accompany the convoy across the Atlantic.战舰将护送该船队过大西洋。

4 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

5 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

6 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

7 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

8 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

10 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

11 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

12 anonymity   

n.the condition of being anonymous

参考例句：

• Names of people in the book were changed to preserve anonymity. 为了姓名保密，书中的人用的都是化名。
• Our company promises to preserve the anonymity of all its clients. 我们公司承诺不公开客户的姓名。

13 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

14 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

15 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。

16 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。

17 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

18 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

19 deflected   

偏离的

参考例句：

• The ball deflected off Reid's body into the goal. 球打在里德身上反弹进球门。
• Most of its particles are deflected. 此物质的料子大多是偏斜的。

20 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

21 intercept   

vt.拦截，截住，截击

参考例句：

• His letter was intercepted by the Secret Service.他的信被特工处截获了。
• Gunmen intercepted him on his way to the airport.持枪歹徒在他去机场的路上截击了他。

22 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

23 complement   

n.补足物，船上的定员；补语；vt.补充，补足

参考例句：

• The two suggestions complement each other.这两条建议相互补充。
• They oppose each other also complement each other.它们相辅相成。

24 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

25 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。

26 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

27 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。

28 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

29 generators   

n.发电机，发生器( generator的名词复数 )；电力公司

参考例句：

• The factory's emergency generators were used during the power cut. 工厂应急发电机在停电期间用上了。
• Power can be fed from wind generators into the electricity grid system. 电力可以从风力发电机流入输电网。 来自《简明英汉词典》