U.S., Mexican presidents discuss trade, immigration, Cuba

WASHINGTON, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday met with his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto at the White House over issues including security, immigration and Cuba.

President Barack Obama and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto shake hands after speaking to the media in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015.

Obama said he raised the fate of 43 Mexican students, who disappeared on Sept. 26 following clashes with police linked with drug gang members in the city of Iguala in Mexico's violence-torn southern state of Guerrero, as the event has drawn¹ attention both at home and abroad.

"Our commitment is to be a friend and supporter of Mexico in its efforts to eliminate the scourge² of violence and the drug cartels that are responsible for so much tragedy inside of Mexico, " the American leader told reporters after his meeting with Pena Nieto.

Obama also spoke³ of his efforts to fix "broken" U.S. immigration system and lauded⁴ Mexico's help in addressing the issue of unaccompanied children flooding into the United States.

Bypassing an uncooperative Congress, Obama unveiled a number of measures in November offering temporary legal status to some five million people living in the U.S. illegally, with a majority of them being Mexicans.

The U.S. saw a spike⁵ in unaccompanied children, mostly from Central American states, over the summer, but Obama said the numbers have been reduced back to "much more manageable levels" in part due to Mexico's "strong" efforts including at its southern border.

Obama said a detente in U.S.-Cuba relations was part of his discussions with Pena Nieto, in which he voiced hope for a "more constructive⁶ policy" toward Cuba and stated his intention to continue to focus on human rights, democracy and political freedom inside the island country.

U.S. and Cuba moved on Dec. 17 to normalize relations following a bitter rivalry⁷ that had lasted for more than half a century, with an American embassy expected to be reestablished in Havana within months.

The Mexican president thanked Obama for his "very intelligent and audacious decision" on immigration and promised to help the Mexican immigrants in the U.S. to obtain needed documentation including birth certificates.

He praised Obama's efforts in restoring diplomatic relations with Cuba, saying "We have offered our desire, our hope to collaborate⁸ in this effort so that as soon as possible you can continue with this re-establishment of relations with Cuba and that you can accomplish all the purposes you have set up to accomplish."

 

Pena Nieto's visit was his first to the U.S. as president. He visited the White House in November 2012 as president-elect.

1 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

2 scourge   

n.灾难，祸害；v.蹂躏

参考例句：

• Smallpox was once the scourge of the world.天花曾是世界的大患。
• The new boss was the scourge of the inefficient.新老板来了以后，不称职的人就遭殃了。

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 lauded   

v.称赞，赞美( laud的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They lauded the former president as a hero. 他们颂扬前总统为英雄。 来自辞典例句
• The nervy feats of the mountaineers were lauded. 登山者有勇气的壮举受到赞美。 来自辞典例句

5 spike   

n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效

参考例句：

• The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
• They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

6 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

7 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。

8 collaborate   

vi.协作，合作；协调

参考例句：

• The work gets done more quickly when we collaborate.我们一旦合作，工作做起来就更快了。
• I would ask you to collaborate with us in this work.我们愿意请你们在这项工作中和我们合作。