VOA标准英语2009-New Commander Pledges to Protect Afghan Civi

The U.S. Army general nominated to be commander of American and NATO forces in Afghanistan says the conflict is "winnable," but foreign forces need to be careful about how they go about defeating the Taliban.
　
Lt. Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, before Senate Armed Services Committee's confirmation¹ hearing, 02 Jun 2009

Lieutenant² General Stanley McChrystal told the Senate Armed Services Committee the mission he has been given is difficult, but not impossible.

"Sir, I believe it is winnable, but I don't think it will be easily winnable," said General McChrystal.

McChrystal said U.S. and allied³ casualties will likely increase in the coming months, as more American forces flow in and attack Taliban strongholds, particularly in southern Afghanistan. But he said he hopes to see progress toward stability within 18 to 24 months.

The general, whose background is mainly in special operations combat, says the military needs to be careful about how it fights in a situation where the key to victory is not necessarily defeating the Taliban and related groups on the battlefield. Rather, he says, success involves the more complex task of convincing the Afghan people to support their own government.

"The measure of effectiveness will not be enemy killed, it will be the number of Afghans shielded from violence," he said.

And General McChrystal says that cannot be done unless U.S., Afghan, NATO and other coalition⁴ forces re-double their efforts to avoid causing civilian⁵ casualties. Several recent incidents have strained U.S.-Afghan relations and turned many Afghans against the government and the coalition.

"If confirmed, I would emphasize that how we conduct operations is vital to success," said McChrystal. "This is a critical point. It may be the critical point. This is a struggle for the support of the Afghan people. Our willingness to operate in ways that minimize casualties or damage, even when doing so makes our task more difficult, is essential to our credibility."

McChrystal called for "precision and discipline" in air strikes and ground operations, and said if confirmed by the senate he will review all rules of engagement and tactical directives in Afghanistan to ensure civilians⁶ are not put in danger unless that is absolutely necessary to protect U.S., Afghan or allied forces. He said if Afghan civilians lose faith in the good intentions of the U.S. and Afghan governments, it would be, in his words, "strategically decisive against us."

General McChrystal's comments reflected President Barack Obama's new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is based on counterinsurgency theory that says the main tasks must be protecting the people and increasing support for the government. Fighting insurgents⁷ is only done in support of those goals.

In a surprise move last month, Obama nominated McChrystal to replace General David McKiernan, who has been in command in Afghanistan for the past year. Announcing the move, U.S. Defense⁸ Secretary Robert Gates said he wanted "fresh eyes" and "new leadership" to implement⁹ the new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan that the president announced in April.

During Tuesday's hearing, General McChrystal also tried to deflect¹⁰ concerns expressed by some senators about alleged¹¹ detainee abuse in Iraq by special operations forces under his command.

"I do not and never have condoned¹² mistreatment of detainees, and never will," he said. "When we found cases where we thought there was an allegation of mistreatment, we investigated every one, and we punished if, in fact, it was substantiated¹³. And that was from the beginning."

But the general acknowledged his troops used some harsh interrogation techniques in 2003, when they were allowed by the Defense Department. He says he reduced the use of those techniques as soon as he took command.

McChrystal also responded to concerns about his handling of the so-called friendly fire death of a famous American football player who joined the Army and was accidentally killed in Iraq by U.S. forces in 2004. The general said he made mistakes in the case of Corporal Pat Tillman, and that the Army failed to treat his family properly by providing all the information as soon as possible. But McChrystal says the failure was caused by mistakes, not by any effort to cover up the friendly fire incident.

At the hearing, General McChrystal and the officer nominated to be commander of all NATO forces worldwide, Admiral James Stavridis, both endorsed¹⁴ a sharp increase in the size of the Afghan police and army, so that one day they can secure the country without foreign help. Admiral Stavridis also called for more funding from NATO countries, and more help in the effort to train the new Afghan forces.

1 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

2 lieutenant   

n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员

参考例句：

• He was promoted to be a lieutenant in the army.他被提升为陆军中尉。
• He prevailed on the lieutenant to send in a short note.他说动那个副官，递上了一张简短的便条进去。

3 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

4 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

5 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

6 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

7 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

8 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。

9 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

10 deflect   

v.(使)偏斜，(使)偏离，(使)转向

参考例句：

• Never let a little problem deflect you.决不要因一点小问题就半途而废。
• They decided to deflect from the original plan.他们决定改变原计划。

11 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

12 condoned   

v.容忍，宽恕，原谅( condone的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Terrorism can never be condoned. 决不能容忍恐怖主义。
• They condoned his sins because he repented. 由于他的悔悟，他们宽恕了他的罪。 来自辞典例句

13 substantiated   

v.用事实支持（某主张、说法等），证明，证实( substantiate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The results of the tests substantiated his claims. 这些检验的结果证实了他的说法。
• The statement has never been substantiated. 这一陈述从未得到证实。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

14 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》