VOA标准英语2010-Obama, Medvedev To Sign New Arms Pact

President Barack Obama talks with President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia following the G-20 Summit Leaders working dinner at the Phipps Conservatory¹ and Botanical Gardens in Pittsburgh, Pa., Sept. 24, 2009.

U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will meet in Prague on Thursday to sign a treaty further reducing both countries' nuclear stockpiles. The signing is expected to boost each country's national security and strengthen the U.S.-Russian relationship.

The two leaders will meet in the Czech capital, where, one year earlier, President Obama laid out his vision of a nuclear-free world. "So today, I state clearly and with conviction America's commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons," he said.

The agreement to be signed Thursday replaces the START-1 treaty, which U.S. President George H.W. Bush and Soviet² President Mikhail Gorbachev signed in 1991.  It expired last December.

After a year of tough negotiations³, Mr. Obama and Mr. Medvedev will sign a treaty to shrink each country's arsenal⁴ of strategic deployed⁵ nuclear warheads by 25 to 30 percent.

The pact⁶ is a modest but important step forward, according to Kingston Reif,  at the Washington-based Center For Arms Control and Non-Proliferation. "The agreement verifiably limits, reduces excess Russian and US nuclear stockpiles, and it provides for an updated, streamlined, modern set of verification, monitoring and transparency provisions," he said.

Kingston Reif also expects this treaty to help strengthen the often-tense relationship between the countries.  Reif says this improved cooperation is expected to help the U.S. and Russia fight nuclear terrorism and work toward tougher sanctions on Iran for its nuclear activities. "The trust and transparency and confidence that the agreement will bring to the US-Russia relationship will also make it easier for the US and Russia to cooperate on other areas that are central to US and Russian security," he said.

When he announced the agreement on March 26, President Obama suggested that it would also enhance U.S. prestige. "And we've demonstrated the importance of American leadership - and American partnership⁷ - on behalf of our own security, and the world's," he said.

After the signing, the treaty must be ratified⁸ by the Russian Duma and the U.S. Senate, where 67 of the 100 Senators must approve it.

During his brief stay in Prague, Mr. Obama will also have a one-on-one meeting with his Russian counterpart, and will have dinner with the heads of state of 11 Central and Eastern European countries.
 

1 conservatory   

n.温室，音乐学院；adj.保存性的，有保存力的

参考例句：

• At the conservatory,he learned how to score a musical composition.在音乐学校里，他学会了怎样谱曲。
• The modern conservatory is not an environment for nurturing plants.这个现代化温室的环境不适合培育植物。

2 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。

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 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

5 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

6 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。

7 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

8 ratified   

v.批准，签认（合约等）( ratify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The treaty was declared invalid because it had not been ratified. 条约没有得到批准，因此被宣布无效。
• The treaty was ratified by all the member states. 这个条约得到了所有成员国的批准。