2007年VOA标准英语-US Defense Secretary Says Diplomacy Working on

By Jim Teeple
Washington
18 April 2007

Robert Gates

U.S. Secretary of Defense¹ Robert Gates, on a visit to Israel, says he believes diplomatic efforts to isolate² Iran for it uranium enrichment activities are working. VOA'S Jim Teeple has details from our Jerusalem bureau.

 

On the final leg of a three-nation tour of the Middle East that has taken him to Jordan and Egypt, Robert Gates held talks with Israel's defense minister, Amir Peretz, late Wednesday. The two discussed Iran's nuclear program, the war in Iraq, Israel's relations with Syria and disagreements between Israel and the United States over the sale of advanced weapons systems.

At a news conference after his talks with Peretz, Gates said he believed recent diplomatic efforts, including two U.N. Security Council resolutions imposing³ sanctions on Iran for its refusal to suspend its uranium enrichment activities should be given a chance to work. "I think it is important that there have been two United Nations resolutions -- that the international community is united in telling Iran what it needs to do with respect to its nuclear program. These things do not work overnight, but it seems to me clearly that the preferable course is to keep our focus on the diplomatic initiatives and particularly because of the united front of the international community at this point," he said.

Iranian officials say their nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only but Israeli officials say Iran is their biggest threat. At Wednesday's news conference, Defense Minister Peretz said diplomatic efforts should be encouraged on Iran but it was not possible, in his words, to remove other options from the table.

Secretary Gates also said Wednesday's multiple bombings in Iraq that killed more than 150 people were horrifying⁴ but would have no effect on the U.S. led effort to try and improve security in Baghdad. "These terrorists are killing⁵ innocent men women and children who are Iraqis. They are killing their countrymen. I think it important to highlight their efforts to try and disrupt the process of reconciliation⁶, to try and prove the Baghdad security plan a failure and we intend to persist to show that it is not," he said.

Speaking earlier in Cairo, Gates called on states in the region to help stabilize⁷ Iraq saying chaos⁸ in Iraq would hurt every country in the Middle East.

Gates also criticized Syria's government, saying he has great concerns about Syria allowing suicide bombers⁹ to cross into Iraq from its territory, and Syrian support for Hezbollah militants¹⁰ in Lebanon.

Gates and Peretz also discussed disagreements between Israel and the U.S. over arms sales. U.S. authorities recently imposed restrictions¹¹ on Israel's ability to sell weaponry to China, and earlier this month the New York Times reported that Israel was trying to delay the sale of advanced U.S. weapons systems to Saudi Arabia and other Gulf¹² states. Israel receives more than two billion dollars in annual military aid from the United States, and U.S. officials have pledged to maintain Israel's military superiority in the region.

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 isolate   

vt.使孤立，隔离

参考例句：

• Do not isolate yourself from others.不要把自己孤立起来。
• We should never isolate ourselves from the masses.我们永远不能脱离群众。

3 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。

4 horrifying   

a.令人震惊的，使人毛骨悚然的

参考例句：

• He went to great pains to show how horrifying the war was. 他极力指出战争是多么的恐怖。
• The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate. 战争的可能性太可怕了，真不堪细想。

5 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。

6 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。

7 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

8 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

9 bombers   

n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟

参考例句：

• Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

11 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

12 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。