2007年VOA标准英语-Bush, Putin to Discuss Missile Defense

By Scott Stearns
Rostock, Germany
07 June 2007

U.S. President George Bush says his plans for a missile defense¹ system in Europe are no threat to Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin says it is the start of a new arms race. VOA White House Correspondent Scott Stearns reports from Germany, where the two leaders will discuss the issue, later Thursday, on the sidelines of the G8 summit.

G8 summit leaders pose for group photo in Heiligendamm, Germany, 07 Jun 2007

President Bush says plans to base a small battery of American interceptor missiles in Poland do not threaten, Russia because the system is no match for Russia's arsenal² of ballistic and cruise missiles.

"A missile defense system cannot stop multiple launch regimes. In other words, the facts are, is that, the fact is this: that you can't stop two, three, four, five missiles," Mr. Bush said.

President Putin says the missile defense plan is upsetting the strategic balance of the world and that he will not be responsible for retaliatory³ steps, if the plan goes through. Mr. Putin told reporters in Moscow Russia would respond by setting new missile targets in Europe.

Trying to ease tensions over the plan, President Bush says there would be no U.S. military response to such a retargeting of Russian missiles, because the two countries are not at war.

The president spoke⁴ following his last official meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who will leave office this month.

Missile defense will top the agenda of the president's meeting, later Thursday, with President Putin. Mr. Bush says he is looking forward to those talks and will again invite the Russian leader to take part in the missile defense system.

"Hopefully, the visit this afternoon will make it clear that we have no animosity. We bear no ill will," he said. "We're simply trying to deal with the true threats of the 21st Century. And, I repeat, Russia is not a threat. They're not a military threat. They're not something that we ought to be hyperventilating about. What we ought to be doing is figuring out ways to work together."

American officials say the missile defense plan is not about Russia, but is primarily aimed at stopping missiles from Iran.

Iranian officials say that is a joke, because the country does not have missiles capable of reaching Europe.

President Putin agrees, saying he sees no real threats from Iranian or North Korean missiles. He says the American plan could be an effort to undermine Russia's relations with Europe.

President Bush says it is best to anticipate what might happen and work to see that it does not, rather than being unprepared for what he calls rogue⁵ regimes with weapons mass destruction.

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 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

3 retaliatory   

adj.报复的

参考例句：

• The process can take years before the WTO approves retaliatory action. 在WTO通过此行动之前，这个程序恐怕要等上一阵子了。 来自互联网
• Retaliatory tariffs on China are tantamount to taxing ourselves as a punishment. 将惩罚性关税强加于中国相当于对我们自己实施课税惩罚。 来自互联网

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。