2006年VOA标准英语-Bush, Maliki Meeting Set for Thursday in Jordan

By Scott Stearns
Amman, Jordan
30 November 2006

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and U.S. President George Bush are scheduled to meet in Jordan Thursday to discuss sectarian violence in Iraq and what America can do to help stop it. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns reports, the two leaders were to have met Wednesday, but those talks were canceled.

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Nouri al-Maliki arrives at the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan, 29 Nov 2006

White House officials say Thursday's talks will go ahead, following some confusion over what happened Wednesday evening.

President Bush was to have met with the Iraqi prime minister and King Abdullah before dinner at Amman's Raghadan Palace. But White House officials say the Jordanian and Iraqi leaders decided¹ to forego the trilateral meeting following their own talks earlier in the day.

President Bush met privately² with King Abdullah instead. The two discussed Syria's involvement in Lebanon and how Jordan and the United States can strengthen the Palestinian Authority.

U.S. officials say the schedule change was in no way related to the publication of a classified White House memo³ raising questions about the Iraqi leader's ability to stop sectarian violence.

They say the canceled meeting was not a snub, and reporters will be able to see for themselves the relationship between the two men when they are scheduled to take questions following their meeting Thursday.

Their talks are expected to focus on stopping sectarian violence, transferring more responsibility to Iraqi authorities and getting neighboring states to better support the Maliki government in Baghdad.

Both men are under domestic political pressure as they enter these talks at a Jordanian hotel.

In Iraq, six cabinet ministers and 30 legislators loyal to anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr decided Wednesday to boycott⁴ parliament and the government to protest the prime minister's meeting with Mr. Bush.

The U.S. president, in turn, is facing opposition⁵ from leaders of the Democratic Party, which won control of both houses of Congress in this month's elections. Many Democrats⁶ want some of the more than 140-thousand U.S. troops in Iraq to start coming home.

President Bush says that is a decision for military commanders on the ground, not politicians in Washington.

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

3 memo   

n.照会，备忘录；便笺；通知书；规章

参考例句：

• Do you want me to send the memo out?您要我把这份备忘录分发出去吗？
• Can you type a memo for me?您能帮我打一份备忘录吗？

4 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

5 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

6 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》