voa标准英语2008-US Defense Secretary Comfortable with Obama's Ir

U.S. Defense¹ Secretary Robert Gates, who has been reappointed to serve in the Obama administration, says he is comfortable with the president-elect's desire for a rapid withdrawal² of U.S. combat troops from Iraq, as long as the pace of the drawdown is regulated, at least in part, by security conditions in the coming months. VOA's Al Pessin reports from the Pentagon on Secretary Gates' first news conference since he was reappointed on Monday.
　

Defense Secretary Robert Gates holds a press briefing at the Pentagon, 2 Dec. 2008

Secretary Gates noted³ that he is in a unique position - the first defense secretary to stay on from one administration to another since the position was created 60 years ago. But he said his connection to President Bush's Iraq policy, which President-elect Obama opposed, will not make it difficult for him to work in the new administration.

Gates said the situation in Iraq has changed dramatically in the last year, with better security and now a bilateral⁴ agreement to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraqi cities by next June, and from the entire country by the end of 2011. But he is not abandoning his view that the U.S. withdrawal should be related to security conditions.

"I still think the pacing needs to be seen in the context of what's going on, both in terms of the deadlines we've agreed to and in terms of the situation on the ground," he said.

Gates says the president-elect has the right balance, pressing for the withdrawal of all U.S. combat troops in 16 months, but also expressing a willingness to listen to advice from his defense secretary and military commanders.

"The question is, 'How do we do this in a responsible way?' And nobody wants to put at risk the gains that have been achieved with so much sacrifice on the part of our soldiers and the Iraqis at this point," Gates said.
　

Vice5 President-elect Joe Biden (r)congratulates Defense Secretary Robert Gates in Chicago, 01 Dec 2008

Secretary Gates says senior officers are looking at how to do that, now that there is a U.S.-Iraqi agreement in place.

"The commanders are already looking at what the implications of that are in terms of the potential for accelerating the drawdown, and in terms of how we meet our obligations to the Iraqis," he said.

Gates said another top priority for the new administration will be to settle on a new strategy for Afghanistan. Several reviews are underway, and the new administration is expected to do its own.

Secretary Gates had indicated that he wanted to retire at the end of the Bush administration, but he said there is no time limit on his reappointment. Indeed, he said he has thrown away the countdown clock he used to keep in his briefcase⁶ indicating how many days and hours remained in his Bush administration tenure⁷.
　

President-elect Barack Obama, left, with Secretary of State-designate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., center, and National Security Adviser-designate Ret. Marine8 Gen. James Jones in Chicago, 01 Dec 2008

Gates said he considers himself a Republican, even though he is not officially a member of the party. But he said he is looking forward to serving with President-elect Obama, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, who will be secretary of state, and other senior Democratic Party members in the new administration.

"The president-elect has made it pretty clear that he wanted a team of people around him who would tell him what they thought and give him their best advice," he said. "I think he has assembled that team. There will no doubt be differences among the team. And it will be up to the president to make the decision."

Gates said he did not have any "negotiations⁹" with President-elect Obama on conditions for his continued service, and he expects most of the political appointees who work for him in the Defense Department to be replaced by Democrats¹⁰ early next year. He also revealed that he held a secret meeting with the president-elect in the firehouse at Washington's Reagan National Airport, near the Pentagon, in mid-November, the week after the election.

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 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。

3 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。

4 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 briefcase   

n.手提箱，公事皮包

参考例句：

• He packed a briefcase with what might be required.他把所有可能需要的东西都装进公文包。
• He requested the old man to look after the briefcase.他请求那位老人照看这个公事包。

7 tenure   

n.终身职位；任期；(土地)保有权，保有期

参考例句：

• He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
• Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。

8 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

9 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

10 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》