VOA常速英语2007年-Turkey's President Says US Must Fight Terrorist

By Deborah Block
Irbil
06 November 2007

Turkey's president says his country "has decided¹" on how to proceed against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq and has informed the United States. The comments by President Abdullah Gul Tuesday came a day after U.S. President George Bush met with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Washington. Deborah Block has more from the northern Iraq's Kurdish capital, Irbil.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul did not specify² what decision has been made. He said part of Prime Minister Erdogan's goal during his trip to Washington was to explain how Turkey has chosen to deal with the Kurdish rebels. President Bush told Turkey's prime minister Monday that the United States would share military intelligence about the rebels. President Gul said Tuesday the U.S. should fight against all terrorism in Iraq.

He said to fight in other parts of Iraq but not in northern Iraq is unacceptable. He said it is the responsibility of the United States.

Kurdish Workers Party rebels have been conducting raids into Turkey from northern Iraq for years, but in recent weeks have stepped up their attacks, killing³ a number of Turkish troops and sparking outrage⁴ among the Turkish population.

The United States, which considers the PKK a terrorist group, has been pressing Turkey to use restraint and avoid a major cross-border attack on rebel bases in northern Iraq.

Osman Ozcelik is an ethnic⁵ Kurd and a member of Turkey's parliament.

He says Turkey has not resolved the problem which affects countries around Turkey and can only be solved through discussion. He says war is not the answer and will only deepen the wounds.

Officials in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq are keeping a close eye on the situation.

Safin Dizaiy is head of international relations for the Kurdistan Democratic Party, the largest political party in Iraqi Kurdistan. He says the PKK should lay down its arms and not provoke a Turkish incursion at the border. However, he is critical of Turkey for not agreeing to what he calls "an amicable⁶ settlement."

"And the PKK problem is an internal problem from Turkey," said Safin Dizaiy. "It is a spillover from Turkey to this region. However, we feel that the Kurdistan region should not be used as a springboard, as a staging ground, for any operations against our neighbors. If military options have been explored in the past and they have not been successful, that means we have to go back to the drawing board and to review the situation, and find other solutions."

Mohammed Muhsin is also with the Kurdistan Democratic Party and is in charge of a large area on Iraq's border with Turkey. He says although the Iraqi border is quiet, that can change at any time.

He says of course, people are afraid but they are ready to defend themselves if they are attacked. He says if Turkey attacks, the United States should protect Kurdistan.

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 specify   

vt.指定，详细说明

参考例句：

• We should specify a time and a place for the meeting.我们应指定会议的时间和地点。
• Please specify what you will do.请你详述一下你将做什么。

3 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

4 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

5 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。

6 amicable   

adj.和平的，友好的；友善的

参考例句：

• The two nations reached an amicable agreement.两国达成了一项友好协议。
• The two nations settled their quarrel in an amicable way.两国以和睦友好的方式解决了他们的争端。