VOA标准英语2009年-Clinton Cautious About US-Syria Dialogue

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says it is too early to say if the United States' troubled relationship with Syria is headed for a thaw¹. Syria's ambassador to Washington, Imad Mustafa, paid an unusual high-profile call at the State Department Thursday.
　
Syria's Ambassador to the U.S. Imad Mustafa (undated photo)

The Syrian envoy² said after his meeting with Acting³ Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman that the discussion was very constructive⁴ and was only the first in a series of U.S.-Syrian contacts.

However Obama administration officials were more cautious, saying the future of the relationship depends on whether Syria is willing to be responsive to U.S. concerns about what is seen as interference in Lebanon, and support for radicals⁵ opposed to Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts.

The United States has not had a full ambassador in Damascus since the 2005 assassination⁶ of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, in which U.N. investigators⁷ implicated⁸ Syrian agents.

Though the two governments have working-level contacts, Ambassador Mustafa's visits to the State Department are rare. Asked about Thursday's meeting at an event with Kosovo's leadership, Secretary Clinton was cautious about where the Syria dialogue will lead.

"It is too soon to say what the future holds," said Hillary Clinton. "Obviously we are working very hard, as is our special envoy George Mitchell, to engage with not only the Israelis and the Palestinians but all of the neighbors in the region and beyond and we are going to pursue the commitment that we stated when we appointed our special envoy to try to bring the parties together for peace and stability in the Middle East."

Clinton will begin her first trip to the Middle East early next week, but will not visit Syria and according to officials is unlikely to have contact with her Syrian counterpart next Monday when they will both attend a donor⁹ conference for Gaza reconstruction¹⁰ in Egypt.

Ambassador Mustafa, none-the-less, told reporters he is encouraged about prospects¹¹ for the future U.S.-Syrian relationship, given President Obama's stated willingness for dialogue with respect with U.S. adversaries¹².

"We believe that this meeting has explored possibilities between Syria and the United States to engage seriously on a diplomatic and political level and also discuss all issues of mutual¹³ concern to both parties," said Imad Mustafa. "We think this is a first step and we believe there will be many further meetings in the future."

State Department Acting Spokesman Robert Wood did not contest the ambassador's depiction¹⁴ of the discussion as constructive, but said future meetings were not agreed on and depend on Syrian actions to address U.S. concerns.

"We first want to see what comes out of the discussions in this meeting," said Robert Wood. "As you know, we're conducting a review of our Syria policy. We want to see, as I said, what steps the Syrians are willing to take to address our issues. We're certainly open to meeting them again if necessary. The Secretary has said that we want to engage Syria. But we do have a lot of concerns about Syrian behavior."

The State Department formally announced Clinton's trip late Thursday. After the Gaza conference in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh, the Secretary goes to Jerusalem and Ramallah for meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders.

The trip also includes a March 5 NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels, a Geneva meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and a stop in Ankara.

1 thaw   

v.（使）融化，（使）变得友善；n.融化，缓和

参考例句：

• The snow is beginning to thaw.雪已开始融化。
• The spring thaw caused heavy flooding.春天解冻引起了洪水泛滥。

2 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

3 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

4 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

5 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

6 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

7 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 implicated   

adj.密切关联的；牵涉其中的

参考例句：

• These groups are very strongly implicated in the violence. 这些组织与这起暴力事件有着极大的关联。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Having the stolen goods in his possession implicated him in the robbery. 因藏有赃物使他涉有偷盗的嫌疑。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

10 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。

11 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

12 adversaries   

n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• That would cause potential adversaries to recoil from a challenge. 这会迫使潜在的敌人在挑战面前退缩。 来自辞典例句
• Every adversaries are more comfortable with a predictable, coherent America. 就连敌人也会因有可以预料的，始终一致的美国而感到舒服得多。 来自辞典例句

13 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。

14 depiction   

n.描述

参考例句：

• Double rhythms, resounding through the lyric depiction and connecting with each other, indicate the thespian place of mankind and the cognition of the writer to this thespian place. 这双重旋律互为表里，表明了人类的某种悲剧性处境以及作家对这种悲剧性处境的感受和认识。
• A realistic depiction of scenes from everyday domestic life. 日常家居生活的写实画。