VOA标准英语2009年-Obama, Gadhafi , Ahmadinejad Address UN Ge

By Margaret Besheer
United Nations
24 September 2009

 
President Barack Obama addresses the United Nations General Assembly, New York, 23 Sep 2009
World leaders addressing the U.N. General Assembly underscored issues of domestic and international concern as the annual debate got underway Wednesday in New York.

President Barack Obama laid out his vision for U.S. foreign policy in a wide-ranging address.

He called for a "new era of engagement" among nations, saying the United States cannot solve the world's problems alone and urged other nations to share in the responsibility.

"But make no mistake. This cannot be solely¹ America's endeavor. Those who used to chastise² America for acting³ alone in the world cannot now stand by and wait for America to solve the world's problems alone. We have sought in word and deed a new era of engagement with the world. And now is the time for all of us to take our share of responsibility for a global response to global challenges," he said.

He said the United States would withdraw all its troops from Iraq by the end of 2011; continue to support Afghanistan and Pakistan in fighting terrorists; and would continuing working for peace in the Middle East and a nuclear bomb-free world.

Following immediately after President Obama was Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

 
Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi addresses the general debate of the 64th session of the U.N. General Assembly, in New York, 23 Sep 2009
Although he has led Libya for 40 years, this was his first time at the General Assembly, and he made up for lost time, speaking for more than an hour and a half.

Wearing his trademark⁵ long sweeping⁶ robes, he waved to the crowd and clasped his hands above his head like a prize fighter as he took the podium.

Mr. Gadhafi covered a range of subjects -- not always coherently. Waving a copy of the U.N. Charter, he railed against what he called the inequality of the institution, but then urged a permanent seat on the Security Council for Africa. He also called on former colonial powers to pay $7.77 trillion in reparations to African countries.

He defended the Taliban, gave his thoughts on the 1963 assassination⁷ of U.S. President John F. Kennedy, and on the H1N1 influenza⁸ pandemic, also known as swine flu.

"Perhaps this swine virus may be one of those viruses that was created in the laboratory and it went out of control because it was meant in the beginning to be used as a military weapon," Mr. Gadhafi said.

In addition to the United States, the four other permanent members of the U.N. Security Council addressed the General Assembly.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev welcomed President Obama's recent decision to abandon Bush-era plans for a missile defense⁹ shield in Eastern Europe. China's President Hu Jintao warned that the world remains¹⁰ under the impact of the financial crisis and that prospects¹¹ for an economic recovery are still not clear. While French President Nicolas Sarkozy called for a sweeping overhaul¹² of the world's financial system.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, whose military has suffered heavy casualties recently in Afghanistan, reasserted his commitment to that country.

"I believe a safer Afghanistan means a safer world. But none of us can be safe if we walk away from that country or from our common mission and resolve. NATO and its partners from Australia to Japan and to other countries must agree new ways to implement¹³ our strategy, and I believe that we must ensure that 'Afghanization', that the army, the people, the police of Afghanistan assume greater responsibility for the security of their own country," he said.

Meanwhile, the presidents of Brazil, Chile, Uruguay and Argentina expressed their support for ousted¹⁴ Honduran President Manuel Zelaya and called for his immediate⁴ return to the power.

"The international community demands that Mr. Zelaya immediately return to the presidency¹⁵ of his country," said Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Speaking in the evening to a nearly empty room, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad gave a lengthy¹⁶ discourse¹⁷ on religion, humanity, and what he sees as the world's ills - mainly capitalism¹⁸, Zionism and liberalism. His speech was notable, however, for what it failed to mention - his government's controversial nuclear program.

1 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

2 chastise   

vt.责骂，严惩

参考例句：

• My father used to chastise my brothers with whips.父亲过去常以鞭打惩罚我的兄弟。
• Should I applaud my husband or chastise him?我是该称赞还是责罚我的丈夫呢？

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 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

5 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

6 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

7 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。

8 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

9 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。

10 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。

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 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

13 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。

14 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

15 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

16 lengthy   

adj.漫长的，冗长的

参考例句：

• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。
• The professor wrote a lengthy book on Napoleon.教授写了一部有关拿破仑的巨著。

17 discourse   

n.论文，演说；谈话；话语；vi.讲述，著述

参考例句：

• We'll discourse on the subject tonight.我们今晚要谈论这个问题。
• He fell into discourse with the customers who were drinking at the counter.他和站在柜台旁的酒客谈了起来。

18 capitalism   

n.资本主义

参考例句：

• The essence of his argument is that capitalism cannot succeed.他的论点的核心是资本主义不能成功。
• Capitalism began to develop in Russia in the 19th century.十九世纪资本主义在俄国开始发展。