VOA常速英语2007年-US Welcomes Commitment to Early Elections in Ge

By David Gollust
State Department
08 November 2007

The United States Thursday welcomed Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili's announcement of early presidential elections in January. But U.S. officials are calling for a complete roll-back of emergency measures declared by the Georgian leader earlier this week. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.

The Georgian president's resort to emergency powers in the face of anti-government rioting came as a disappointment to senior U.S. diplomats¹ who had established close ties with the American-educated leader.

At a news briefing, State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack welcomed Mr. Saakashvili's commitments to advance the presidential election from the end of next year to January 5 and to hold a referendum on advancing parliamentary voting, moves seen as major concessions² to the opposition³.

However McCormack said the United States also wants to see an early return to full constitutional rule in the former Soviet⁴ republic.

"We continue to urge the government of Georgia to lift the state of emergency and restore all media broadcasts," said Sean McCormack. "These are necessary steps to restore the democratic conditions for the election and referendum. We call on all the parties to maintain calm, respect the rule of law, and address their differences through serious discussions to strengthen Georgia's democratic political system."

McCormack said reconciliation⁵ talks should take place in a spirit of compromise and in support of Georgia's sovereignty, independence and territorial⁶ integrity - an apparent allusion⁷ to charges by Mr. Saakashvili and his supporters that this week's violent unrest in Tbilisi was being fomented⁸ by Russia.

The spokesman said the United States had no particular information to either substantiate⁹ or refute that notion but said meddling¹⁰ in Georgia by outsiders would be an unwelcome development.

Mr. Saakashvili has closely aligned¹¹ himself with the United States since coming to power in 2003 as the hero of the so-called Rose Revolution that peacefully toppled then-president Eduard Shevardnadze, a former Soviet foreign minister.

The Bush administration has given the Saakashvili government diplomatic support in its efforts to reassert control over the breakaway provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, where Moscow has heavy influence, and to forge ties with the European Union and NATO.

However Mr. Saakashvili's rigid¹² governing style has drawn¹³ broad criticism, and Western governments and human rights groups have said his response to this week's demonstrations¹⁴ - in which hundreds of protesters were injured in clashes with police - was disproportionate.

Spokesman McCormack said under questioning it is too early for the Bush administration to be considering an aid cutback or other punitive¹⁵ action against the Saakashvili government, and that U.S. officials will look to see what it does in response to calls for an end to the state of emergency.

He said organizing a successful presidential election by early January is possible, but that it will require a concerted effort by Georgian authorities to assure an open campaign and an election that is transparent¹⁶, fair and free from intimidation¹⁷.

1 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

3 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

4 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

5 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

6 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

7 allusion   

n.暗示，间接提示

参考例句：

• He made an allusion to a secret plan in his speech.在讲话中他暗示有一项秘密计划。
• She made no allusion to the incident.她没有提及那个事件。

8 fomented   

v.激起，煽动（麻烦等）( foment的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His words finally fomented her hostility. 他的言词终于引发了她的敌意。 来自辞典例句
• His legs should be fomented. 应当对他的双腿进行热敷。 来自互联网

9 substantiate   

v.证实；证明...有根据

参考例句：

• There is little scientific evidence to substantiate the claims.这些主张几乎找不到科学依据来证实。
• These theories are used to substantiate the relationship between the phenomenons of the universe.这些学说是用来证实宇宙现象之间的关系。

10 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

11 aligned   

adj.对齐的，均衡的

参考例句：

• Make sure the shelf is aligned with the top of the cupboard.务必使搁架与橱柜顶端对齐。

12 rigid   

adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的

参考例句：

• She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
• The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

13 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

14 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

15 punitive   

adj.惩罚的，刑罚的

参考例句：

• They took punitive measures against the whole gang.他们对整帮人采取惩罚性措施。
• The punitive tariff was imposed to discourage tire imports from China.该惩罚性关税的征收是用以限制中国轮胎进口的措施。

16 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

17 intimidation   

n.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• The Opposition alleged voter intimidation by the army.反对党声称投票者受到军方的恐吓。
• The gang silenced witnesses by intimidation.恶帮用恐吓的手段使得证人不敢说话。