2007年VOA标准英语-Israel Says Tension with Syria Subsiding

By Robert Berger
Jerusalem
24 September 2007

Israel is playing down tensions with its arch-enemy to the north - Syria. As Robert Berger reports from VOA's Jerusalem bureau, there are new moves to bring Syria into the Middle East peace process.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says Israel is not interested in war with Syria. Speaking behind closed doors to parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense¹ Committee, Mr. Olmert said he believes tensions between the two countries will subside².

There have been unconfirmed reports in the foreign press of a secret Israeli air strike on a Syrian nuclear facility more than two weeks ago. Syria denies reports that it received nuclear materials from North Korea, but confirms that Israeli jets violated its air space.

The incident occurred months after Israel warned of a Syrian military buildup. Israeli generals said Syria could opt³ for war to retrieve⁴ the strategic Golan Heights, captured by Israel during the Six Day War in 1967.

Israeli analyst⁵ Alon Liel says suspicions are running deep.

"Syria all the time said that it has one hand extended to peace and the other one is preparing for war," said Liel. "Israel believes the second half, that Syria is preparing for war, and did not believe the peace option."

The United States has signaled that it would invite Syria to an international peace conference expected to take place in November. Israeli spokesman Mark Regev says Israel would not object to Syrian participation⁶.

"Israel is interested in as many Arab states attending this meeting as possible, states that support peace, that support reconciliation⁷, that oppose terrorism," said Regev.

Israel hopes that if Syria attends the conference it would be pulled away from the radicals⁸ and into the camp of the Arab moderates. At the same time, Israel says it will not resume peace talks until Syria cuts ties with Iran and stops supporting Islamic militant⁹ groups, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

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 subside   

vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降

参考例句：

• The emotional reaction which results from a serious accident takes time to subside.严重事故所引起的情绪化的反应需要时间来平息。
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon.围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。

3 opt   

vi.选择，决定做某事

参考例句：

• They opt for more holiday instead of more pay.他们选择了延长假期而不是增加工资。
• Will individual schools be given the right to opt out of the local school authority?各个学校可能有权选择退出地方教育局吗？

4 retrieve   

vt.重新得到，收回；挽回，补救；检索

参考例句：

• He was determined to retrieve his honor.他决心恢复名誉。
• The men were trying to retrieve weapons left when the army abandoned the island.士兵们正试图找回军队从该岛撤退时留下的武器。

5 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

6 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。

7 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。

8 radicals   

n.激进分子( radical的名词复数 )；根基；基本原理；[数学]根数

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals. 一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The worry is that the radicals will grow more intransigent. 现在人们担忧激进分子会变得更加不妥协。 来自辞典例句

9 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。