VOA标准英语2009年-CIA Chief: Iranian Leaders Debating Nuclea

By Gary Thomas
Dearborn, Michigan
18 September 2009

The United States and its allies have long contended that Iran is embarked¹ on a path to becoming a nuclear weapons power. 
 
 
CIA Chief Leon Panetta
In an exclusive VOA interview, CIA Director Leon Panetta says that Iran is acquiring nuclear knowledge and capability², but that there are differences among the country's leaders about whether to actually build a bomb.

"Our view is and our intelligence is that while they are proceeding³ to develop a nuclear capability in terms of power and low-grade uranium, that there is still very much a debate going on within Iran as to whether or not they ought to proceed further. To some extent that provides an opening, hopefully, to try to influence the future direction of Iran," he said.

Panetta spoke⁴ to VOA before speaking at a dinner of the Arab-American community in Dearborn, Michigan.

The Associated Press has reported that experts of the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, believe Iran has already developed the capability to build a nuclear weapon. However, the IAEA issued a statement in response that it has no concrete proof that Iran is engaged in a nuclear weapons program.

 
Supporters of defeated presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi shout slogans as they face riot police during demonstration⁵ in Tehran, 20 Jun 2009
Iran's June presidential election, in which incumbent⁶ President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was declared the winner, was marred⁷ by opposition⁸ allegations of vote fraud. Thousands of protesters took to the streets, and the government responded with a massive crackdown, arresting and putting on trial many opposition supporters. The CIA chief says the political landscape in Iran is still shifting and moving as a result. 

"The fact is, we're probably still not sure of all the implications coming out of this election," Panetta said. "One thing is for sure: that there continues to be turmoil⁹ in Iran as the result of the election. While the Supreme¹⁰ Leader and Ahmadinejad have consolidated¹¹ their positions and seem to have control in Iran, there continues to be the voices of opposition that are raised."

Panetta says the implications of the election for the United States are also murky¹² as the Obama administration seeks to engage with Iran.

"The end result of that is that it's still difficult to know whether or not it means the leaders there will be more hardline and therefore more difficult to engage in diplomatic relationships with the United States, or whether they view what happened in the election as a signal to them to try to see if they can establish a better relationship with the United States and with the rest of the world," Panetta said.

 
US President Barack Obama delivers  statement regarding missile defense¹³ at White House in Washington, 17 Sep 2009 
On Thursday President Obama announced he was scrapping¹⁴ plans for a controversial missile defense shield based in Eastern Europe and was ordering a new system designed to intercept¹⁵ Iranian short and medium-range missiles. The previous plan envisioned a greater threat from longer-range missiles. Analysts¹⁶ have said that even if Iran did develop a nuclear weapon, they would still need to develop the technology to deliver it.

The U.S. and five other countries - the so-called P5-plus-One - are set to begin wide-ranging talks with Iran. CIA director Panetta says the U.S. will be closely exploring in the coming few weeks whether a new relationship with Iran can work after the recent turmoil there.

1 embarked   

乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• We stood on the pier and watched as they embarked. 我们站在突码头上目送他们登船。
• She embarked on a discourse about the town's origins. 她开始讲本市的起源。

2 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

3 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

6 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

7 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

8 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

9 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

10 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

11 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。

12 murky   

adj.黑暗的，朦胧的；adv.阴暗地，混浊地；n.阴暗；昏暗

参考例句：

• She threw it into the river's murky depths.她把它扔进了混浊的河水深处。
• She had a decidedly murky past.她的历史背景令人捉摸不透。

13 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。

14 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。

15 intercept   

vt.拦截，截住，截击

参考例句：

• His letter was intercepted by the Secret Service.他的信被特工处截获了。
• Gunmen intercepted him on his way to the airport.持枪歹徒在他去机场的路上截击了他。

16 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。