VOA标准英语2009年-US, Georgia, Sign Partnership Charter

The United States and Georgia Friday signed a bilateral¹ charter on strategic partnership² aimed at increasing cooperation in defense³, trade, energy and other areas. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the deal should advance Georgia's bid for membership in NATO and other western structures.

State Department officials stress that the charter is a not a mutual⁴ defense treaty, but they say it is a highly-visible sign of American support for the Caucuses⁵ state in the aftermath of its conflict with Russia last August.

The agreement provides a road map for cooperation between the two countries across the spectrum⁶ of bilateral relations, including U.S. assistance to Georgia's military to help that country qualify for NATO membership.

Russia invaded Georgia in August after the Tbilisi government tried to retake the breakaway region of South Ossetia by force. The conflict left Russian troops in South Ossetia and another breakaway area, Abkhazia, and Moscow later recognized the nominal⁷ independence of both.
　

US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice (R) and Georgian FM Grigol Vashadze shake hands after signing a bilateral cooperation agreement at the State Department, 9 Jan. 2009

But at the charter signing ceremony with Georgian Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze, Secretary of State Rice reaffirmed U.S. support for the country's territorial⁸ integrity.

"The United States supports, and will always support Georgia's sovereignty and its territorial integrity, as well as its Euro-Atlantic aspirations⁹ and its integration¹⁰ into the institutions of the Euro-Atlantic," she said. "The pace of Georgia's integration with NATO should depend on the desires of Georgians themselves, and on Georgia's ability to meet NATO standards."

NATO leaders endorsed¹¹ eventual¹² membership for Georgia and Ukraine at their Bucharest summit last year, but a U.S.-led effort to offer them a formal membership action plan was rebuffed by alliance members concerned about Moscow's reaction.

After the Russia-Georgia conflict, NATO foreign ministers again endorsed membership for the two countries in principle, but through existing structures. In his remarks at the ceremony, Georgian Foreign Minister Vashadze said he hopes the charter with the United States will be one such vehicle.

"This is something the Georgian nation has been aspiring¹³ to, and this is a stepping-stone which will bring Georgia to Euro-Atlantic structures, to membership within NATO and to return to the family of western and civilized¹⁴ nations," he said. "We're very proud that we lived to see this day, and we would like to stress that we appreciate what the United States has been doing for us, and understand that this document of our strategic partnership brings not only rights, but also obligations for Georgia to be a responsible ally, to be a democratic open and liberal society."

Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Matthew Bryza, the Bush administration's point-man for Caucuses affairs, said the United States will continue working diplomatically against any further recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhzia.

Bryza said only Nicaragua and the Palestinian radical¹⁵ group Hamas had followed Russia's lead in accepting the two area's self-proclaimed independence and said he hoped Moscow itself will eventually realize it made a mistake.

"The perspective is that we have to keep on fighting diplomatically through the Geneva process, more broadly in all of our interactions with Russia to make clear that it's violation¹⁶ of its own policy of supporting Georgia's territorial integrity, was a bad decision," he said.

Bryza suggested that over time, a combination of economic and democratic strides by Georgia, and political outreach to the two breakaway areas, might persuade them to accept the authority of the Tbilisi government.

1 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。

2 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

3 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。

4 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

5 caucuses   

n.（政党决定政策或推举竞选人的）核心成员( caucus的名词复数 )；决策干部；决策委员会；秘密会议

参考例句：

• Republican caucuses will happen in about 410 towns across Maine. 共和党团会议选举将在缅因州的约410个城镇进行。 来自互联网

6 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

7 nominal   

adj.名义上的；(金额、租金)微不足道的

参考例句：

• The king was only the nominal head of the state. 国王只是这个国家名义上的元首。
• The charge of the box lunch was nominal.午餐盒饭收费很少。

8 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

9 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

10 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

11 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 eventual   

adj.最后的，结局的，最终的

参考例句：

• Several schools face eventual closure.几所学校面临最终关闭。
• Both parties expressed optimism about an eventual solution.双方对问题的最终解决都表示乐观。

13 aspiring   

adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求

参考例句：

• Aspiring musicians need hours of practice every day. 想当音乐家就要每天练许多小时。
• He came from an aspiring working-class background. 他出身于有抱负的工人阶级家庭。 来自辞典例句

14 civilized   

a.有教养的，文雅的

参考例句：

• Racism is abhorrent to a civilized society. 文明社会憎恶种族主义。
• rising crime in our so-called civilized societies 在我们所谓文明社会中日益增多的犯罪行为

15 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

16 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。