VOA标准英语2009年- East Europe Officials Say US Backing Away

By Stefan Bos
Budapest
17 September 2009

Poland and the Czech Republic are reacting to U.S. President Barack Obama's decision to scrap¹ plans for a Europe-based missile defense² system. Several officials in the region warn that the move will improve Washington's relations with Moscow at the expense of other Eastern European allies.

 
Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer gestures during the press conference in Prague, 17 Sep 2009
Czech Prime Minister Jan Fischer said President Obama told him early Thursday that the United States is abandoning plans to build a defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic aimed at intercepting³ missiles from other countries. 

Mr. Fischer said President Obama told him that the United States would not be building a missile-defense radar⁴ system on Czech territory. The prime minister added that the Czech Republic "acknowledges this decision". 

The system was promoted by Mr. Obama's predecessor⁵ George W. Bush to defend against missiles launched from what he called "rogue⁶" states such as Iran and North Korea.

But Russia was strongly opposed to the system, saying it undermined its national security interests and could lead to more instability in Europe.

The Obama administration has made clear that it wants to "reset⁷" relations with Russia, so the two former Cold War foes⁸ can cooperate on Iran, fighting Taliban insurgents⁹ in Afghanistan, and reducing their vast nuclear arsenals¹⁰.

Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk¹¹ says his country still remains¹² loyal to the United States, despite the decision to scrap plans to build the anti-missile system. 

Several officials at Poland's National Security Bureau are expressing concerns about the move, saying the presence of American troops on Polish soil would have increased the country's security. 

Zbigniew Lewicki, a specialist in American studies at the University of Warsaw, told the Polish Radio External Service that there is also concern about Russia's perceived attempts to increase its influence in former Soviet¹³ satellite states, including Poland. 

"What is worrying is the fact that the decision was obviously taken as a result of Russia's insistence¹⁴ of scrapping¹⁵ the plan," said Lewicki. "And it also presents confirmation¹⁶ from the United States that Russia's wishes are very important in this part of the world. I think we should be very worried about that kind of approach. Nobody opposes better relations between the United States and Russia. But it should never be done in a manner which confirms Russia's unfounded claims to be the decisive force in this part of Europe."

The Head of the Russian Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, Konstantin Kosachev, has welcomed Washington's decision to drop plans for the missile defense system. 

In comments translated by Russia Today television, he said this will strengthen ties between the United States and Russia.

"It is a clear sign that the United States is taking Russia and its arguments as seriously as their national security considerations," said Kosachev. "I am sure that the cooperation between the countries in the field of strategic security is more effective for both Russia and the United States than any AMD [anti-missile defense system], any armed forces or any military operation."

While Moscow insists that this will lead to more stability in Europe, some analysts¹⁷ and officials in Eastern Europe are unconvinced. They cite Russia's brief war with Georgia and Russia's confrontations¹⁸ with Ukraine over natural gas supplies last year as reasons to remain skeptical¹⁹ about the Kremlin's intentions.

1 scrap   

n.碎片；废料；v.废弃，报废

参考例句：

• A man comes round regularly collecting scrap.有个男人定时来收废品。
• Sell that car for scrap.把那辆汽车当残品卖了吧。

2 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。

3 intercepting   

截取（技术），截接

参考例句：

• The police had been intercepting my mail, ie reading it before it was delivered. 警方一直截查我的邮件。
• We've been intercepting radio transmissions from Moscow. 我们已从莫斯科拦截到无线电信号。

4 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

5 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

6 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。

7 reset   

v.重新安排，复位；n.重新放置；重放之物

参考例句：

• As soon as you arrive at your destination,step out of the aircraft and reset your wristwatch.你一到达目的地，就走出飞机并重新设置手表时间。
• He is recovering from an operation to reset his arm.他做了一个手臂复位手术，正在恢复。

8 foes   

敌人，仇敌( foe的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They steadily pushed their foes before them. 他们不停地追击敌人。
• She had fought many battles, vanquished many foes. 她身经百战，挫败过很多对手。

9 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

10 arsenals   

n.兵工厂，军火库( arsenal的名词复数 )；任何事物的集成

参考例句：

• We possess-each of us-nuclear arsenals capable of annihilating humanity. 我们两国都拥有能够毁灭全人类的核武库。 来自辞典例句
• Arsenals are factories that produce weapons. 军工厂是生产武器的工厂。 来自互联网

11 tusk   

n.獠牙，长牙，象牙

参考例句：

• The wild boar had its tusk sunk deeply into a tree and howled desperately.野猪的獠牙陷在了树里，绝望地嗥叫着。
• A huge tusk decorated the wall of his study.他书房的墙上装饰着一支巨大的象牙。

12 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。

13 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

14 insistence   

n.坚持；强调；坚决主张

参考例句：

• They were united in their insistence that she should go to college.他们一致坚持她应上大学。
• His insistence upon strict obedience is correct.他坚持绝对服从是对的。

15 scrapping   

刮，切除坯体余泥

参考例句：

• He was always scrapping at school. 他在学校总打架。
• These two dogs are always scrapping. 这两条狗总是打架。

16 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。

17 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

18 confrontations   

n.对抗，对抗的事物( confrontation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• At times, this potential has escalated into actual confrontations. 有时，这一矛盾升级为实际的对抗。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法
• These confrontations and uncertainties were bing played out for the first time on a global scale. 所有这一切对抗和不稳定，第一次在全球范围内得到充分的表演。 来自辞典例句

19 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。