2007年VOA标准英语-UN Force for Darfur Faces Challenges

By Anita Elash
Paris
02 August 2007

The international community has thrown its support behind the United Nations resolution authorizing¹ a 26,000-strong peacekeeping force in Darfur. The force is to be in place by January.  But some experts say getting the troops in place will be a difficult task. Anita Elash reports for VOA from Paris.

Chinese peacekeepers prepare to depart for their UN mission to Sudan, 16 Jan 2007 file photo

The U.N. resolution that passed on Tuesday calls for 26,000 peacekeepers, to be sent to the western Darfur region of Sudan. Some 200,000 people have died in the region and another 2.5 million have been displaced since fighting began four years ago.

The government of Sudan is accused of arming Arab Janjaweed militiamen against ethnic² African rebels, and until this week, it had stalled efforts to deploy³ a U.N. peacekeeping force. In the end, it accepted a watered down resolution.

Sudan's Foreign Minister, Lam Akol, said although some concerns have not been addressed, it was a good compromise.

Lam Akol talks to reporters during a press conference in Khartoum, 1 Aug 2007

"Overall, we think that we can live with this resolution, and we will undertake to implement⁴ it faithfully. And we expect others also to do the same," he said.

Rodolphe Adada, Joint⁵ Special Representative of the U.N. Secretary General was more cautious in his comments.

"Don't forget that the force in itself is not sufficient to bring the peace in Darfur," he noted⁶.  "It will be after the agreement we are trying to get between the Darfurians, the work of the political side, this will be basis of the peace and we are there to help implement this peace agreement."

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, who has made the Darfur issue a priority since taking office May, says he hopes most of the troops will come from Africa, with backup from Asia. 

So far, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Egypt, Cameroon and Ethiopia have pledged to provide troops.   Rwanda and Nigeria, whose forces make up the bulk of the AU force in Darfur, have pledged to send more men.  Malawi, which has a battalion⁷ in the current force, says it is also considering expanding its participation⁸ in the Darfur mission.

But analysts⁹ say the U.N. could have a hard time putting together such a large contingent¹⁰.  

Roland Marchand is an Africa expert at the Center for the Study of International Relations in Paris. He says many African and Asian leaders believe the United States has overstated the extent of the problem in Darfur, and they will be reluctant to commit troops or equipment.  He says he doubts the full force will be in place by January.

"The number of troops which is required is extremely high," he explained.  "The second problem is troops on the ground do not mean much, except if they have the equipment to do their job. And again, for the helicopters, for a number of other aspects, is going to be another issue.  Every problem has a solution. I'm not saying it's going to be impossible. What I'm saying is it's certainly not going to be as easy as people think today."

Major western powers are expected to provide only limited manpower. So far, only a handful have agreed. France has offered to take part in the chain of command, as well as to help with reconstruction¹¹ and relief.

Denmark and Indonesia also say they will take part, and the European Union is considering how much it wants to get involved. However, Britain says it will not send ground officers.

Marchand says the peacekeepers could still be hampered¹² by Sudan's government.  Although Sudan has agreed to accept the force, there is nothing in the U.N. resolution to stop it from holding up the deployment¹³.

Marchand says another problem is that there is still no political agreement between the warring factions¹⁴. He says that will eventually put the peacekeepers in danger, and make them ineffective.

"Those troops might have in the very short term a positive impact on the situation on the ground, but in the medium term it's 100 percent sure, I would say even 200 percent sure that those troops are going to be stuck in local conflicts," he added.

According to the U.N. resolution, political talks between the warring factions are to take place this weekend. The first peacekeepers are scheduled to arrive in Darfur in October.

1 authorizing   

授权，批准，委托( authorize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Letters of Marque: Take letters from a warning friendly power authorizing privateering. 私掠许可证：从某一个国家获得合法抢劫的证书。
• Formal phavee completion does not include authorizing the subsequent phavee. 阶段的正式完成不包括核准随后的阶段。

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

4 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

5 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。

6 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。

7 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

8 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。

9 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

10 contingent   

adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队

参考例句：

• The contingent marched in the direction of the Western Hills.队伍朝西山的方向前进。
• Whether or not we arrive on time is contingent on the weather.我们是否按时到达要视天气情况而定。

11 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

12 hampered   

妨碍，束缚，限制( hamper的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The search was hampered by appalling weather conditions. 恶劣的天气妨碍了搜寻工作。
• So thought every harassed, hampered, respectable boy in St. Petersburg. 圣彼德堡镇的那些受折磨、受拘束的体面孩子们个个都是这么想的。

13 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。

14 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别