voa标准英语2008年-Gadhafi's Son Meets Senior US Officials

A son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi met senior Bush administration officials Tuesday in another sign of improved U.S.-Libyan relations. Saif al-Islam Gadhafi sees Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Thursday. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.
　

Seif al-Islam Gadhafi, son of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, 18 Oct 2008

Saif al-Islam Gadhafi holds no official position in the Libyan government, but he has been a diplomatic trouble-shooter and heads a family charitable foundation.

His high-level talks in Washington reflect a continued warming in a relationship that was openly hostile, until Libya renounced¹ terrorism and weapons of mass destruction in 2003.

The son of the Libyan leader met Tuesday with Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch, who brokered² a recent agreement settling remaining compensation claims from 1980s acts of terrorism attributed to Libya.

State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said the younger Gadhafi will also see White House officials and members of Congress before his Thursday meeting with Rice.

The claims settlement last month cleared the final obstacle to the full normalization³ of relations, though the Gadhafi government remains⁴ under criticism for human rights abuses and political curbs⁵.

At a news briefing, Spokesman McCormack said human rights issues are a standard item on the U.S. agenda, including during Rice's Libya visit in September. He said the Bush administration has decided⁶ that in the case of Libya, dialogue is the best way to bring about change:

"The relationship with Libya has come a long way," he said. "But it has a long, long way to go, specifically in terms of freedoms, universally-recognized freedoms in Libya. And we're going to continue to work on those issues. I know its come up, various individuals have said, well you've given up a lot, having the secretary visit Libya, in terms of establishing normal diplomatic relations. Well, Libya has done much of what we have we asked it to do to change the relationship," said McCormack.
　

Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, 06 Nov 2008

In an unprecedented⁷ gesture Monday, President Bush telephoned Moammar Gadhafi to express satisfaction over the implementation⁸ of the accord clearing away terrorism-related compensation claims.

Libya on October 31 paid $1.5 billion into a fund for families of victims of the 1988 bombing of a U.S. Pan Am jumbo jet over Scotland and other acts of terrorism for which Libya accepted responsibility.

Another $300 million was raised from private sources to settle Libyan court claims stemming from retaliatory⁹ U.S. airstrikes.

A White House spokesman said the two leaders believe the agreement should help bring a painful chapter in the two countries' history closer to closure.

He said the United States will continue to work on the relationship with the aim of having dialogue that encompasses¹⁰ all subjects including human rights, reform, and the fight against terrorism.

1 renounced   

v.声明放弃( renounce的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布放弃；宣布与…决裂；宣布摒弃

参考例句：

• We have renounced the use of force to settle our disputes. 我们已再次宣布放弃使用武力来解决争端。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Andrew renounced his claim to the property. 安德鲁放弃了财产的所有权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 brokered   

adj.由权力经纪人安排（或控制）的v.做掮客（或中人等）( broker的过去式和过去分词 )；作为权力经纪人进行谈判；以中间人等身份安排…

参考例句：

• a peace plan brokered by the UN 由联合国出面协商的和平计划
• Your husband brokered the deal to go in, transfrer the assets and get our man out. 你丈夫后来插了一脚，把生意都抢了过去，我们的人也被挤了出来。 来自电影对白

3 normalization   

n.（normalisation）正常化，标准化

参考例句：

• The visit signalled the normalization of relations between the two countries.这次访问显示两国关系已经正常化。
• He was pleased to the normalization of relationship between the police and the people.他很高兴警方和人民之间关系的正常化。

4 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

5 curbs   

v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• In executing his functions he is not bound by any legal curbs on his power. 在他履行职务时，他的权力是不受任何法律约束的。 来自辞典例句
• Curbs on air travel were being worked out and would shortly be announced. 限制航空旅行的有关规定正在拟定中，不久即将公布。 来自辞典例句

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

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 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

10 encompasses   

v.围绕( encompass的第三人称单数 )；包围；包含；包括

参考例句：

• The job encompasses a wide range of responsibilities. 这项工作涉及的职责范围很广。
• Its conservation law encompasses both its magnitude and its direction. 它的守恒定律包括大小和方向两方面。 来自辞典例句