VOA常速英语2007年-US Defense Chief Says Too Early to Tell Whether

By Al Pessin
Washington
01 November 2007

U.S. Defense¹ Secretary Robert Gates says he believes the top Iranian leader is aware of the effort by the country's elite² Quds Force to help Shiite insurgents³ in Iraq. And he confirmed that Iran's president has promised to try to stop the flow of weapons and other types of support. VOA's Al Pessin reports from the Pentagon.

At a news conference Thursday, Secretary Gates said he believes senior Iranian leaders probably are aware of the support their elite Quds Force provides to Shiite militias⁴ in Iraq. "I believe that certainly the leadership of the Quds Force is aware of this. Whether (Ayatollah) Khamenei is aware, I think you'd have to say, probably."

Secretary Gates said he believes top Iranian leaders know about the weapons flow to Iraq even though he has not seen definitive⁵ proof.

The top U.S. military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, added "Nor have I (seen definitive proof), although I don't know how they couldn't be (aware)."

The United States has long accused Iran of providing the material for high-powered roadside bombs that can pierce armored vehicles, as well as other weaponry and support for Iraqi Shiite militias. But U.S. officials have declined to say whether senior Iranian leaders are involved in the effort.

Iran denies the charge.

Secretary Gates was also asked about a report in the Los Angeles Times a month ago. The Times quoted the top U.S. general in Iraq, David Petraeus, as saying Iran's president promised Iraq's prime minister he would stop the flow of weapons, training, money and direction to Shiite militias in Iraq. "It is my understanding that they have provided such assurances. I don't know whether to believe them. I'll wait and see," he said.

Secretary Gates said it is too early to determine whether Iran is living up to that promise. Earlier Thursday, the second-ranking American commander in Iraq, Lieutenant⁶ General Ray Odierno, expressed a similar view.

"It's unclear yet to me whether they have slowed down bringing in weapons and supporting the insurgency⁷ or not. I'll still wait and see. But we still have found some caches. Lately, we have found three or four significant rocket caches, as well as rocket launchers that were fairly new. Again, we don't know when those came into the country exactly," he said.

General Odierno also reports his forces found a large cache of material for the high-powered bombs just a week ago. He also says there has been some decline in violence by Shiite groups in recent months. He attributes that in part to coalition⁸ attacks on the groups and their leaders, and to the ceasefire declared by prominent Iraqi Shiite leader Moqtada al-Sadr.

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 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

3 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

4 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

5 definitive   

adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• No one has come up with a definitive answer as to why this should be so.至于为什么该这样，还没有人给出明确的答复。

6 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

7 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

8 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。