2006年VOA标准英语-US Making Progress in Iraq and War on Terr

By Amy Katz
Washington, DC
22 February 2006
 
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Top U.S. officials say progress is being made in Iraq and in the war against terrorism.  As Amy Katz reports, they also say neither can be won on the battlefield alone.

U.S. Secretary of Defense¹ Donald Rumsfeld says America's armed forces have become more agile² and more capable, but the wars the U.S. is fighting cannot be won only by using military force.

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Donald Rumsfeld (r) and General Peter Pace
  
"We need to find ways to win the ideological³ battle as well; to convince people who might otherwise be attracted to the message of violent extremism, that there is a better way of life, and that free political and free economic systems are forces for good in the world, which indeed they are, not as the enemy would suggest -- responsible for the plight⁴ of people who have needs and hopes and aspirations⁵ that are as yet unachieved," said the secretary.

Rumsfeld adds that every effort to demonstrate the depth of America's compassion⁶ and generosity⁷ -- like the current U.S. effort to aid in mudslide recovery efforts in the Philippines -- is an important step in the war on terror.

The Pentagon recently admitted it was using another tactic⁸ to win hearts and minds -- paying for positive news coverage⁹ in Iraq.  Last Friday, Secretary Rumsfeld said he had ordered that to be stopped.  But when he was asked about it at a Pentagon briefing Tuesday, he said he had misspoken. "It was put under review, and I don't have knowledge as to whether or not it has been stopped.  I do have knowledge that it was put under review, and I was correctly informed, and I just mis-stated the facts"

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the U.S. Joint¹⁰ Chiefs of Staff, General Peter Pace, says the emergence¹¹ of democracy in Iraq is proving to be an effective tool in the battle against insurgents¹² there.

"[It is] difficult to know specifically how many insurgents still remain,” said the general.  “What is knowable is that the more and more Iraqis who believe that their government will provide a future for them that will be beneficial for them and their families, the fewer and fewer will feel a need to accept payment, so to speak, for attacking."

The Deputy Director of Plans and Strategy for U.S. Central Command, Brigadier General Mark Kimmett, says right now the military is doing most of the work in the fight against al-Qaida and other terror organizations with ties to it.

"To defeat this enemy it is far more than simply the military,” said General Kimmett.  “It will take a network -- interagency network, international network -- that brings together Department of the Treasury¹³, brings together the State Department, brings together all the intelligence agencies, brings together all of our law enforcement agencies, so that we can develop a network, both here in America, and internationally, to fight this network and defeat this network."

General Kimmett says the U.S. needs such a strong network, to fight against the al-Qaida network, which he says is transnational, borderless and is not bound by any rules.

1 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。

2 agile   

adj.敏捷的，灵活的

参考例句：

• She is such an agile dancer!她跳起舞来是那么灵巧！
• An acrobat has to be agile.杂技演员必须身手敏捷。

3 ideological   

a.意识形态的

参考例句：

• He always tries to link his study with his ideological problems. 他总是把学习和自己的思想问题联系起来。
• He helped me enormously with advice on how to do ideological work. 他告诉我怎样做思想工作，对我有很大帮助。

4 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

5 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

6 compassion   

n.同情，怜悯

参考例句：

• He could not help having compassion for the poor creature.他情不自禁地怜悯起那个可怜的人来。
• Her heart was filled with compassion for the motherless children.她对于没有母亲的孩子们充满了怜悯心。

7 generosity   

n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为

参考例句：

• We should match their generosity with our own.我们应该像他们一样慷慨大方。
• We adore them for their generosity.我们钦佩他们的慷慨。

8 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

9 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

10 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。

11 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

12 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

13 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。