2007年VOA标准英语-Bush Iraq War Adviser Concerned About Iraq Gove

By Dan Robinson
Washington
07 June 2007
 

President Bush's nominee¹ to be special adviser² on Iraq and Afghanistan says he is concerned about the Iraqi government's capacity for political reconciliation³. Lieutenant⁴ General Douglas Lute⁵ also told a Senate confirmation⁶ hearing that there have been mixed results so far from the U.S. troop surge in Iraq. VOA's Dan Robinson reports from Capitol Hill.

Lieutenant General Douglas Lute

President Bush nominated General Lute to serve as deputy national security adviser on Iraq and Afghanistan to help coordinate⁷ war efforts across the government and improve implementation⁸ of the president's policies.

At the general's Senate confirmation hearing, Armed Services Committee chairman, Democrat⁹ Carl Levin asked him about doubts he expressed before President Bush's January 10 speech announcing the troop surge. The general said it is still not clear to him the strategy will work.

"I would assess at this point that the Iraqi participation¹⁰ in the surge has been uneven¹¹ so far, and I think we are in the early days and time will tell," he said.

Lute also confirmed that he had expressed concerns that a military surge would likely have only temporary and localized effects unless there were greater efforts by the Iraqi government and non-military U.S. agencies.

He said two other concerns are how to eliminate the perception of the U.S. military presence as an occupation, and how Iraqi security forces can avoid becoming overly dependent on U.S. forces.

Lute said political reconciliation is the only solution for Iraq, and he voiced concerns that Iraqi government leaders have the capacity to accomplish this.

"The question in my mind is not to what extent can we force them or lever them to a particular outcome, but rather to what degree do they actually have the capacity themselves to produce that outcome and if produced or if pressed too hard, will we in turn end up with an outcome that isn't really worth the paper it is written on," he said.

Asked if there should be consequences if Iraqi leaders don't meet specific benchmarks, Lute said this should be part of future policy considerations but added he has reservations about how much pressure can be applied¹² on a system that is not very capable right now.

In his own questioning, Republican Senator John Warner said he is concerned about the level of Iraqi military cooperation with the U.S. troop surge.

"I personally, just speaking for myself, am not entirely¹³ satisfied with the measure of their participation in this surge. We hear reports now that their units are rolling over [rotating] in a period of 90 days when our troops are there for a year or more?," he said.

In later questioning, General Lute sought to clarify his remarks on the Iraqi government, saying that while he is concerned he is not yet convinced Iraqi leaders are incapable¹⁴ or unwilling¹⁵ to take the necessary steps for political reconciliation that could break the cycle of violence in Iraq.

And he says he does not believe that Congressional debate over timelines for U.S. troop reductions "undercut the morale¹⁶" of U.S. troops.

1 nominee   

n.被提名者；被任命者；被推荐者

参考例句：

• His nominee for vice president was elected only after a second ballot.他提名的副总统在两轮投票后才当选。
• Mr.Francisco is standing as the official nominee for the post of District Secretary.弗朗西斯科先生是行政书记职位的正式提名人。

2 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

3 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。

4 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

5 lute   

n.琵琶，鲁特琴

参考例句：

• He idly plucked the strings of the lute.他漫不经心地拨弄着鲁特琴的琴弦。
• He knows how to play the Chinese lute.他会弹琵琶。

6 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

7 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

8 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

9 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

10 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

11 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

12 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

13 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

14 incapable   

adj.无能力的，不能做某事的

参考例句：

• He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。
• Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

15 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

16 morale   

n.道德准则，士气，斗志

参考例句：

• The morale of the enemy troops is sinking lower every day.敌军的士气日益低落。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。