2007年VOA标准英语-Another US General Calls for More Time in Iraq

By Al Pessin
Pentagon
06 July 2007

Amid growing pressure from the congress for the start of a U.S. withdrawal¹ from Iraq this year, a senior U.S. commander in Iraq is warning that a premature² withdrawal would create, in his words, "a mess."  VOA's Al Pessin reports from the Pentagon the commander is the latest in a series of senior officers to issue such a warning.

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US Major General Rick Lynch briefs the media during a a press conference in the heavily fortified Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq, 24 June 2007

While attention in Washington is focused on progress reports the Bush administration must give the congress in mid-July and mid-September, military commanders are appealing to politicians to give them the time they need for the new Iraq strategy to work.

The latest to speak, on Friday, was Major General Rick Lynch, commander of coalition⁴ forces south of Baghdad.

"We need these surge forces.  They came in for a reason," he said.  "They're being used for the reason they came in.  It's going to take some time to mature the situation.  Over time we can turn the area over to Iraqi security forces and then we'll be ready to do something that looks like a withdrawal, but that's not going to happen any time soon."

General Lynch says if congress forces the start of a withdrawal before Iraqi forces are ready to take over, insurgents⁶ will move back into areas his forces now control, and will resume their activities in support of insurgents in Baghdad.

"It'd be a mess," he added.  "Those surge forces are giving us the capability⁷ we have now to take the fight to the enemy.  And the enemy only responds to force, and we now have that force.  If those surge forces go away, that capability goes away, and the Iraqi security forces aren't ready yet to do that.  So now, what you're going to find if you did that is you'd find the enemy regaining⁸ ground, reestablishing sanctuary⁹, building more IEDs [Improvised Explosive Devices], carrying those IEDs into Baghdad and the violence would escalate¹⁰.  It'd be a mess."

Speaking via satellite from a base in Iraq, Major General Lynch said since the current operation began three weeks ago, his forces have cleared insurgent⁵ sanctuaries¹¹, found more than 40 weapons caches and more than 50 homemade bombs, and cleared and secured more than 1,000 buildings.  He reports 50 insurgents have been killed and 230 captured, some of them senior leaders.

"That indeed is going to have an effect on the security situation in Baghdad," he said.  "The problem is, you're not going to see an instantaneous, measurable effect.  It's going to take a while."

But General Lynch said his forces have still not moved into about 30 percent of the four-province area where he is responsible.  He says there are not enough capable Iraqi forces to move in behind U.S. troops and maintain security so his forces can move into the remaining areas.  But he says the situation is improving.

And while he would not predict when it might be safe to begin withdrawing U.S. forces, he indicated most of the serious fighting should be finished by about the time the eagerly anticipated September report to the congress is due.

"I see these aggressive offensive operations taking us through July, August and into September," he noted¹².  "But by then, based on our calculations, we will have denied the enemy those sanctuaries and we can transition into the hold and retain phase in those sanctuaries."

In recent weeks, other senior commanders have also warned against a premature U.S. withdrawal from Iraq.  Ten days ago, the general who was in charge of training Iraqi forces warned against drawing down U.S. forces too quickly in the wake of preliminary successes.  And just a few days before that, the number two U.S. commander, Lieutenant¹³ General Ray Odierno, said it could be next spring before Iraqi forces are ready to take over from the coalition.

The statements place the generals uncharacteristically at odds¹⁴ with several leading Republican members of the Senate, who have declared the new security strategy a failure.  Some of them have joined Democrats¹⁵ in calling for the start of a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq before the end of the year.

1 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

2 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

3 fortified   

adj. 加强的

参考例句：

• He fortified himself against the cold with a hot drink. 他喝了一杯热饮御寒。
• The enemy drew back into a few fortified points. 敌人收缩到几个据点里。

4 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

5 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

6 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

7 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

8 regaining   

复得( regain的现在分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• She was regaining consciousness now, but the fear was coming with her. 现在她正在恢发她的知觉，但是恐怖也就伴随着来了。
• She said briefly, regaining her will with a click. 她干脆地答道，又马上重新振作起精神来。

9 sanctuary   

n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区

参考例句：

• There was a sanctuary of political refugees behind the hospital.医院后面有一个政治难民的避难所。
• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。

10 escalate   

v.(使)逐步增长(或发展)，(使)逐步升级

参考例句：

• It would tempt Israel's neighbors to escalate their demands.它将诱使以色列的邻国不断把他们的要求升级。
• Defeat could cause one side or other to escalate the conflict.失败可能会导致其中一方将冲突升级。

11 sanctuaries   

n.避难所( sanctuary的名词复数 )；庇护；圣所；庇护所

参考例句：

• The designation of special marine reserves and marine sanctuaries shall be subject to the State Council for approval. 海洋特别保护区、海上自然保护区的确定，须经国务院批准。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After 1965 he acquiesced when they established sanctuaries on that soil. 1965年以后，他默认了他们在那块土地上建立庇护所。 来自辞典例句

12 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

13 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。

14 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

15 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》