VOA标准英语2010年-US, Russia Hammer Out New Nuclear Agre

The United States and Russia say a new strategic arms agreement will be formally announced when the presidents of both countries have spoken with one another about it.  White House and Russian Foreign Ministry² spokesmen say the conversation is expected soon.  A new accord would set an auspicious³ tone for President Barack Obama's nuclear summit in Washington on April 12 and 13.  The agreement faced difficult negotiations⁴, and more problems could emerge during ratification⁵ in the U.S. Senate.

Before the United States and Soviet⁶ Union signed the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) both sides had tens of thousands of nuclear warheads.  The pact⁷ mandated⁸ a reduction to about 6,000.

Seeking to reset⁹ Washington's strained ties with Moscow, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton promised to work closely with Russia to sign a new agreement for further reductions.  She spoke¹ in Geneva nine months before START was to expire in December 2009.

"There is a lot of work to be done," Clinton said.  "We think this is a fresh start, not only to improve our bilateral¹⁰ relationship but to lead the world in important areas, particularly with respect to nuclear weapons and nuclear security."

During his visit to Moscow last July, President Obama said the United States and Russia must lead by example to reduce the threat of nuclear proliferation.  He later reported progress toward that goal, even though the old START treaty had expired.

Russian analyst¹¹ Viktor Litovkin, associate editor of the Independent Military Review, says several issues held up agreement.

Litovkin says that first of all, these were issues of verification, transparency and control - control equivalence.  Another obstacle, he adds, was undoubtedly¹² the connection between strategic offensive and strategic defensive¹³ weapons.

The new agreement is expected to reduce each country's number of nuclear warheads for each side to about 1,500.

Delivery systems, such as missiles and bombers¹⁴, will also be limited.

It also raises expectations for further weapons reductions in the years ahead.

Moscow expressed concern throughout the negotiating process that a U.S. missile defense¹⁵ system in central Europe proposed by the Bush Administration would neutralize¹⁶ Russian offensive weapons.  This despite U.S. assurances that the system was designed to defend against Iran.  President Obama reconfigured the proposed system and moved its elements closer to Iran.

Treaty ratification will require 67 votes in the U.S. Senate.  Mindful of Republican opposition¹⁷ to any agreement that limited missile defense in Europe, U.S. negotiators are reported to have pushed the issue hard with Russian counterparts.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov assured Secretary Clinton in Geneva last year that his country shared America's common non-proliferation goal, including Iran and the Korean peninsula.

The 1991 START treaty took more than 400 days to ratify¹⁸.  But whatever the fate of the new START agreement, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon recently underscored its immediate¹⁹ importance.

"This will have a hugely positive impact on the forthcoming Washington summit meeting on nuclear disarmament as well as the NPT [Nuclear Proliferation Treaty] review conference which will be held in May in New York," Mr. Ban noted²⁰.

And success of that conference, said Mr. Ban, can help the whole world live without fear of nuclear weapons.
 

1 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。

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 auspicious   

adj.吉利的；幸运的，吉兆的

参考例句：

• The publication of my first book was an auspicious beginning of my career.我的第一本书的出版是我事业吉祥的开始。
• With favorable weather conditions it was an auspicious moment to set sail.风和日丽，正是扬帆出海的黄道吉日。

4 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。

5 ratification   

n.批准，认可

参考例句：

• The treaty is awaiting ratification.条约正等待批准。
• The treaty is subject to ratification.此条约经批准后才能生效。

6 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。

7 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

8 mandated   

adj. 委托统治的

参考例句：

• Mandated desegregation of public schools. 命令解除公立学校中的种族隔离
• Britain was mandated to govern the former colony of German East Africa. 英国受权代管德国在东非的前殖民地。

9 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。

10 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

11 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。

12 undoubtedly   

adv.确实地，无疑地

参考例句：

• It is undoubtedly she who has said that.这话明明是她说的。
• He is undoubtedly the pride of China.毫无疑问他是中国的骄傲。

13 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

14 bombers   

n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟

参考例句：

• Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 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。

16 neutralize   

v.使失效、抵消，使中和

参考例句：

• Nothing could neutralize its good effects.没有什么能抵消它所产生的好影响。
• Acids neutralize alkalis and vice versa.酸能使碱中和碱，亦能使酸中和。

17 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。

18 ratify   

v.批准，认可，追认

参考例句：

• The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
• The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。

19 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。

20 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。