VOA标准英语2012--'Friends of Syria' to Meet in Tunis

'Friends of Syria' to Meet in Tunis

Months of demonstrations¹ like this one and funerals like this one, which was attacked by Syrian troops, led to international outrage² and a vote at the United Nations Security Council. The resolution would have required the withdrawal³ of troops from Syrian cities, the release of detainees and the start of a new political process.
But Russia and China vetoed the resolution, a frustrating⁴ end to a months-long effort to bring the international community together.
It was a victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who intensified⁵ his crackdown on demonstrators.
He is defying not just the United Nations, but also the Arab League, which is spearheading the "Friends of Syria" effort.
Russia will not attend the Tunis meeting, and China may not either. But U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will. “We'll send a clear message to Russia, China and others who are still unsure about how to handle the increasing violence but are up until now unfortunately making the wrong choices," she said.
Clinton wants the group to agree on more sanctions, more condemnations of the Assad crackdown, more contact with the opposition⁶ and more help for Syrians caught up in the violence.
But at least one Syrian opposition group thinks that is the wrong approach. Members of a group called "Building the Syrian State" say their country's future has become a point of competition among the big powers, without regard for the Syrian people.
The group’s leader, former political prisoner Louay Hussein, says the international community must unite to help convince President Assad to hold real transition talk. “It’s really not a matter of a softer or a tougher approach. No. What we really want is that all these blocs⁷ reach a consensus⁸ about finding a solution to the Syrian crisis," he said.
Hussein says the Tunis meeting will be mainly a propaganda exercise. But others argue there is a broad international consensus.
Thirteen countries supported the unsuccessful Security Council resolution. And the General Assembly adopted a similar, though non-binding, measure. The organizers of Friday’s meeting hope to build on that, to get concessions⁹ from Damascus, to press Russia and China to join the effort, and most importantly to stop the violence.

1 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

2 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

3 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

4 frustrating   

adj.产生挫折的，使人沮丧的，令人泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的现在分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's frustrating to have to wait so long. 要等这么长时间，真令人懊恼。
• It was a demeaning and ultimately frustrating experience. 那是一次有失颜面并且令人沮丧至极的经历。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 intensified   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
• The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 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。

7 blocs   

n.集团，联盟( bloc的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The division of Europe into warring blocs produces ever-increasing centrifugal stress. 把欧洲分为作战集团产生了越来越大的离心效果。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The policy of the two blocs was played out. 把世界分为两个集团的政策已经过时了。 来自辞典例句

8 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

9 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。