VOA常速英语2007年-US Defense Secretary: Security in Iraq Within R

By Cindy Saine
Washington
05 December 2007

U.S. Defense¹ Secretary Robert Gates has made an unannounced visit to Baghdad where he told reporters a secure and stable Iraq is within reach. As VOA's Cindy Saine reports from Washington, the secretary's visit was marred² by a car bomb blast in central Baghdad that killed at least 14 people.

In a joint³ news conference in Baghdad with Iraqi Defense Minister Abdul al-Qadir, Defense Secretary Gates said he found a dramatic change in the security situation during his visit to the country. He said the decline in overall violence has led to a substantial increase in the number of refugees returning home after almost five years of war. Gates said much still needs to be done, such as integrating Iraqis who have been fighting al-Qaida on the local level into the country's security forces. But he expressed optimism that the challenges can be met.

"More than ever, I believe that the goal of a secure, stable and democratic Iraq is within reach. We need to be patient, but we also need to be absolutely resolved in our desire to see the nascent⁴ signs of hope across Iraq expand and flourish so that all Iraqis can enjoy peace and prosperity," Gates said.

Asked when the declining violence might allow the United States to begin removing its heavy military machinery⁵ and equipment from Baghdad, Gates said the question itself speaks to the progress that has been made.

"First of all, I can understand the nature of the concern with regard to increasingly heavy traffic here in Baghdad. I saw something here today that I have not seen in the previous five visits that I've made - I saw a traffic jam," he said.

Gates arrived in Mosul in northern Iraq, before heading to Baghdad. He acknowledged increasing terrorist activities in northern Iraq, and said U.S. commanders there are looking forward to the deployment⁶ of more Iraqi forces. He said no request has been made for additional U.S. combat troops for northern Iraq.

During his brief visit, the defense secretary held meetings with U.S. military commanders and with senior Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Gates praised Mr. Maliki for signing a declaration of principles on the long term relationship with the United States.

Secretary Gates is using his meetings with Iraqi government officials to press them to use the relative lull⁷ in violence to pass key reconciliation⁸ legislation and to improve government services to Iraqi citizens.

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 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

3 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

4 nascent   

adj.初生的，发生中的

参考例句：

• That slim book showed the Chinese intelligentsia and the nascent working class.那本小册子讲述了中国的知识界和新兴的工人阶级。
• Despite a nascent democracy movement,there's little traction for direct suffrage.尽管有过一次新生的民主运动，但几乎不会带来直接选举。

5 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

6 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

7 lull   

v.使安静，使入睡，缓和，哄骗；n.暂停，间歇

参考例句：

• The drug put Simpson in a lull for thirty minutes.药物使辛普森安静了30分钟。
• Ground fighting flared up again after a two-week lull.经过两个星期的平静之后，地面战又突然爆发了。

8 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。