VOA标准英语2010年-US Vice President Embarks on State Vis

United States Vice¹ President Joe Biden and family arrives in Kenya's capital, Nairobi to begin a three-day official state visit.

A leading Kenyan legislator told VOA U.S Vice President Joseph Biden is scheduled to meet President Mwai Kibaki, Prime Minister Raila Odinga, as well as the leadership of parliament’s reform caucus² Tuesday. Mr. Biden arrived late Monday in Nairobi as part of a three-day official visit to the country.

Olago Oluoch, co-chairman of Kenya’s parliamentary reform caucus, said his group will present a progress report to Mr. Biden about the much-needed reforms the country has embarked³ upon.

“He’s got a series of meetings; first he is meeting the President of the Republic of Kenya, Mr. Mwai Kibaki, and he is meeting the Prime Minister. Then, later, he is going to be meeting the speaker of the national assembly, parliament and, lastly, he is going to meet me and four of my colleagues who are leaders of the parliamentary caucus for reforms,” he said.

After addressing a joint⁴ news conference with President Kibaki, Mr. Biden is also scheduled to visit Kenya’s parliament, which is set to open Tuesday after a recent recess⁵.

President Barack Obama’s administration has urged Kenya’s coalition⁶ government to reform crucial state institutions. America’s envoy⁷ to Kenya, Ambassador Michael Ranneberger, said “the United States will not do business as usual with those who do not support the reform agenda, or who support violence. Let me assure you that we will take specific actions to back up those words.”

But, legislator Oluoch said Kenya has taken steps to address the demand for reforms.

“We believe that (in) the agenda for the meeting today, we will brief the Vice President of the United States (Mr. Biden) how far we have reached, what challenges we are still facing and what our expectations are,” Oluoch said.

Local media reported recently that President Obama wanted to see Kenya’s ongoing⁸ constitutional review process to be successfully concluded. But, he added that the United States is not pushing for either a “yes” or a “no” vote at the referendum scheduled to be held on 4th August.

Mr. Obama said, "I think it's up to the Kenyan people to make a decision about the direction of their country. But, as a great friend of Kenya and as president of the United States, I am hoping that the Kenyan people, through a process of self-determination, are able to take advantage of this moment."

Legislator Oluoch praised Washington’s support for Kenya’s constitutional review process.

“Ambassador Ranneberger has been very positive on the need for Kenyans to be educated of the draft (constitution). The U.S government, through its agency USAID, has been able to reach out to the youth and reach out to women who are the marginalized in our society in such a way that they have been mobilized to understand the constitution, so that finally they can be able to make their own decision,” Oluoch said.

He said Mr. Biden’s visit is a demonstration⁹ of the strong bond between Washington and Nairobi.

Oluoch also added that it was a great honor for the country to host the Vice President of the United States at a time when Kenya needs support from her true friends.
 

1 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

2 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

3 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。

4 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

5 recess   

n.短期休息，壁凹（墙上装架子，柜子等凹处）

参考例句：

• The chairman of the meeting announced a ten-minute recess.会议主席宣布休会10分钟。
• Parliament was hastily recalled from recess.休会的议员被匆匆召回开会。

6 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

7 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。

8 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

9 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。