VOA标准英语2010年-Quartet Aims for Independent Palestini

Meeting of the quartet of Middle East peace mediators. From left, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton pose after the news conferences in Moscow, Russia, 19 Mar¹ 2010

Top international diplomats² on Friday pushed for a final Middle East peace settlement that would create an independent Palestinian state within 24 months. The international Quartet of Middle East peace mediators also called on Israel to freeze all settlement activity following an Israeli announcement it planned to build new Jewish housing in East Jerusalem.

The Quartet met in the Russian capital and issued a formal statement read by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

"The Quartet believes these negotiations³ should lead to a settlement, negotiated between the two parties within 24 months, that ends the occupation which began in 1967 and results in the emergence⁴ of an independent, democratic, and viable⁵ Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with Israel and its other neighbors," he said.

Mr. Ban met other senior Quartet officials, from the United States, the European Union and Russia.

While the Quartet has no enforcement power, it called on the international community to contribute immediate⁶, concrete, and sustained support to the Palestinian authority.

The statement also condemned⁷ Israel's recent announcement that it planned to build 1,600 new housing units in East Jerusalem. The Quartet has consistently called for Israel to restrain settlement activity.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton again urged both sides to show restraint.

"The goal of the Quartet, like the goal of the United States government, is to get the proximity⁸ talks re-launched. We do not think unilateral actions by either party are helpful," Clinton said.

Secretary Clinton also said the U.S. envoy⁹ to the Middle East, George Mitchell, will visit the region following Friday's Quartet meeting. He will meet separately with Prime Minister Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Following Friday's talks, the quartet also condemned Thursday's rocket attack from Gaza that killed a Thai farmer in Israel and reiterated¹⁰ a call for the immediate release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who was seized by Gaza militants¹¹ in 2006.

Political analyst¹² Alexey Malashenko at the Moscow Carnegie Center told VOA the Quartet meeting can be summed up as a call to avoid extremist provocations¹³.

Malashenko says the way out of the [Middle East conflict] is slow and painful and requires awareness¹⁴ that a solution will probably take decades. In the meantime, he adds, the effort entails¹⁵ conflict management, which is probably the most important thing today. In that respect, the analyst says the Quartet is doing a good thing.

The group also underscored the need for a solution to the continuing deterioration¹⁶ in Gaza that addresses Israel's legitimate¹⁷ security concerns. On Jerusalem, the Quartet recognized the city's importance not only for Israelis and Palestinians, but also for Jews, Muslims, Christians¹⁸. Its status, according to the Quartet, can be secured through good faith negotiations for people around the world.
 

1 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

2 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

5 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

6 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。

7 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

8 proximity   

n.接近，邻近

参考例句：

• Marriages in proximity of blood are forbidden by the law.法律规定禁止近亲结婚。
• Their house is in close proximity to ours.他们的房子很接近我们的。

9 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。

10 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

11 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 provocations   

n.挑衅( provocation的名词复数 )；激怒；刺激；愤怒的原因

参考例句：

• We cannot ignore such provocations. 对于这种挑衅，我们不能置之不理。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• They must immediately cease all their provocations. 他们必须停止一切挑衅。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

14 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。

15 entails   

使…成为必要( entail的第三人称单数 )； 需要； 限定继承； 使必需

参考例句：

• The job entails a lot of hard work. 这工作需要十分艰苦的努力。
• This job entails a lot of hard work. 这项工作需要十分努力。

16 deterioration   

n.退化；恶化；变坏

参考例句：

• Mental and physical deterioration both occur naturally with age. 随着年龄的增长，心智和体力自然衰退。
• The car's bodywork was already showing signs of deterioration. 这辆车的车身已经显示出了劣化迹象。

17 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

18 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。