2006年VOA标准英语-Australia to Watch India-US Nuclear Deal

By Patricia Nunan
New Delhi
07 March 2006

Australian Prime Minister John Howard says his government will watch closely to see how India and the United States work out the details of their groundbreaking civilian¹ nuclear energy agreement. He says Australia has no immediate² intention to lift its ban on the sale of uranium to India, but he calls the agreement with the U.S. a significant development.

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Prime Minister John Howard says Australia, one of the world's leading exporters of uranium, is maintaining its policy of only selling to nations that have signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty - which India has not done.

Last week, President Bush and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh agreed to a landmark³ deal on sharing civilian nuclear energy technology, in part to help India meet its skyrocketing energy needs.

If ratified⁴ by legislators in both nations, the deal would force India to separate its military and civilian nuclear sites, and open the civilian sites up for international inspections⁵.

Mr. Howard, on a visit to New Delhi, says Australia and India will stay in touch about how those details are hammered out.

"It is a very significant agreement and we look at it positively," he said. "In particular, it brings within the reach of international inspections the civilian nuclear capacity of India, and that's a very important development. And it would be very foolish to ignore it."

India and the U.S. reached the deal during a three-day visit last week by President Bush. The president said even though India had not signed the non-proliferation treaty, or NPT, bringing India into the international nuclear fold is in U.S. interests.

The deal would give India access to nuclear fuel for use in generating energy that had been blocked to it in the past, because it had not signed the NPT.

Analysts⁶ say both Mr. Bush and Mr. Singh face tough fights in selling the nuclear deal to their respective legislatures.

Speaking before parliament Tuesday, Mr. Singh assured lawmakers that the deal would not affect India's military nuclear program, and there would be no limit placed on its ability to develop weapons.

India first tested a nuclear device in 1974 and again in 1998, sparking a nuclear arms race between it and long-time rival Pakistan.

1 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

2 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。

3 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

4 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。

5 inspections   

n.检查( inspection的名词复数 )；检验；视察；检阅

参考例句：

• Regular inspections are carried out at the prison. 经常有人来视察这座监狱。
• Government inspections ensure a high degree of uniformity in the standard of service. 政府检查确保了在服务标准方面的高度一致。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。