VOA常速英语2007-Concern Raised About Possible Closing of Iraq-Tu

By Deborah Block
Ibrahim Khalil, Iraq
30 October 2007

Truck and taxi drivers at the main crossing point of the border between Iraq and Turkey worry it could be closed soon, as the Turkish government threatens a military incursion into northern Iraq.  The drivers say they would lose their jobs and that businesses would close on both sides of the border. Deborah Block reports from the northwestern border of Iraq.

Long lines of cargo¹ trucks and taxis slowly wait their turn at the Ibrahim Khalil border crossing into northwestern Iraq.   The road is the safest route for trucks carrying everything from fuel to cement.

Turkey's military has been massing at the border, ready to attack rebel bases of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq.  Ankara says the rebels are carrying out raids into Turkey and recently killed 12 soldiers in an ambush² in the southeastern part of the country.

Most of the hundreds of drivers who cross the border each day are ethnic³ Kurds from both Iraq and Turkey.  Many Kurds in Iraq say Turkey is using the PKK as an excuse to attack the northern Kurdistan region of Iraq.  They say Ankara fears the political and economic success of the semi-autonomous region will spur Kurds in Turkey to demand their own autonomy.

A Turkish taxi driver was concerned about his future. After Turkey's threatened incursion, he says, business dropped considerably⁴, adding that if Turkey closes the border, the taxi drivers will lose their jobs. 

Each side of the border depends on the other.  Many Turkish-owned businesses are in nearby Iraqi towns and supply them with a variety of goods.  A number of those companies have shut down, recently, because they fear cross-border attacks by Turkey's military. 

Turkish Prime Minister Recip Tayyip Erdogan has threatened sanctions on exports to Iraq to pressure the Iraqi government to strike at the rebels.

A truck driver at the border said sanctions would also hurt Turkey. He added that if Turkey closes the border, it will lose the economy, which depends on this cross-border trade.

An Iraqi man at the border says he helps Turkish companies in northern Iraq translate documents from Turkish into Kurdish.  He says it is frustrating⁵ trying to get across the border into Turkey.

He says it is difficult to cross the border and that there are long waits at the check points because the guards search everything. 

Like many others in northern Iraq, this translator says the border problem between Turkey's government and the rebels should be solved with diplomacy⁶, rather than violence.

1 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

2 ambush   

n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击

参考例句：

• Our soldiers lay in ambush in the jungle for the enemy.我方战士埋伏在丛林中等待敌人。
• Four men led by a sergeant lay in ambush at the crossroads.由一名中士率领的四名士兵埋伏在十字路口。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

5 frustrating   

adj.产生挫折的，使人沮丧的，令人泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的现在分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's frustrating to have to wait so long. 要等这么长时间，真令人懊恼。
• It was a demeaning and ultimately frustrating experience. 那是一次有失颜面并且令人沮丧至极的经历。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。