2007年VOA标准英语-New UN Secretary-General Counts Sudan, North Ko

By Peter Heinlein
United Nations
02 January 2007

Ban Ki-moon, in his first day on the job as U.N. secretary-general, has named Darfur, North Korea and the Middle East among his top priorities. From U.N. headquarters, VOA's Peter Heinlein reports Mr. Ban avoided criticizing the execution of Saddam Hussein.

New UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon gives a news conference at UN headquarters, 2 Jan 2007

Mr. Ban was greeted with applause from U.N. staff Tuesday as he took over as the world body's eighth secretary-general.

His first order of business was to pay respects to U.N. peacekeepers and others who died in the line of duty. He paused for a moment of silence at a meditation¹ room in the U.N. lobby.

Before going into a closed meeting with employees, the new U.N. chief spoke² of the difficult challenges he faces in the world's trouble spots.

"I start my duties at a daunting³ time in international affairs, starting from Darfur to Middle East to Lebanon, Iran Iraq, North Korea, many other crises that trouble our world," he said.

Mr. Ban is viewed as closer to the United States than his predecessor⁴, Kofi Annan, who often clashed with Washington on policy issues.  But in his introductory statement, the new secretary-general had a carefully phrased word of caution to those who would exercise power unilaterally.

"These challenges and issues need to be addressed collectively, with collective wisdom and collective efforts." he added.  "Not a single person, including secretary-general of the United Nations, not a single country, however strong, powerful, resourceful may be, cannot address this. We need to have some common efforts."

When asked about the execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, Mr. Ban chose his words carefully. He backed away from previous U.N. criticisms of capital punishment.

"Saddam Hussein was responsible for committing heinous⁵ crimes and unspeakable atrocities⁶ against the Iraqi people, and we should never forget the victims of his crimes," he said.  "The issue of capital punishment is for each and every member state to decide."

Mr. Ban told reporters he is already working on the crisis in Sudan's Darfur region. He says he will meet his special envoy⁷ to the region, Jan Eliasson, Wednesday, and plans to travel to Africa later this month, where he hopes to meet with Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir.

"I'm going to meet with special envoy of secretary-general Jan Eliasson tomorrow morning. I intend to attend African Union summit meeting later part of this month," he explained.  "There I hope I will be able to consult with the president of Sudan and other leaders of Africa."

The former South Korean foreign minister says the North Korean nuclear issue will remain a priority on his agenda.  He said he plans to push for continuation of the six-party talks involving the two Koreas, along with the United States, Russia, China and Japan.

Mr. Ban is expected to begin naming key members of his administration later this week. He has already named award-winning Haitian broadcast journalist Michele Montas as his spokesman, and Vijay Nambiar of India as his chief of staff. Nambiar previously⁸ served as a special adviser⁹ to former Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

1 meditation   

n.熟虑，（尤指宗教的）默想，沉思，（pl.）冥想录

参考例句：

• This peaceful garden lends itself to meditation.这个恬静的花园适于冥想。
• I'm sorry to interrupt your meditation.很抱歉，我打断了你的沉思。

2 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。

3 daunting   

adj.使人畏缩的

参考例句：

• They were faced with the daunting task of restoring the house.他们面临着修复房子的艰巨任务。
• Starting a new job can be a daunting prospect.开始一项新工作有时会让人望而却步。

4 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

5 heinous   

adj.可憎的，十恶不赦的

参考例句：

• They admitted to the most heinous crimes.他们承认了极其恶劣的罪行。
• I do not want to meet that heinous person.我不想见那个十恶不赦的人。

6 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

8 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。

9 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。