VOA标准英语2013--US Weighs Military Options for Syria Chemical Weapons

 

US Weighs Military Options for Syria Chemical Weapons

The options being considered include bombing weapons sites and even the possibility of arming rebels.  

In any scenario¹, there are no easy or quick solutions, leading Defense² Department officials to proceed with extreme caution.  

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the U.S. has concluded with some degree of varying confidence that Syria has used chemical weapons, but cautions against any rash decisions.

"We are continuing to assess what happened, when, where. I think we should wait to get the facts before we make any judgments³ on what action, if any should be taken, and what kind of action," Hagel said.

Just locating the chemical weapons would be a monumental operation that could involve the deployment⁴ of hundreds of U.S. troops, who would be tasked with safeguarding the weapons and preventing contamination - a job for which they have already trained extensively in places like Iraq.

Syria's air defenses remain strong, and analysts⁵ envision a powerful and fierce reaction from Bashar al-Assad's forces.

Michael Rubin, of the American Enterprise Institute, said it could be a messy operation.

“We're not going to be able to simply secure the chemical weapons. That could take a couple of weeks and that would be if the government was cooperating with us," he said. "So, if we want to get rid of the chemical weapons, it literally⁶ means bombing them. That's going to spread a great deal of contamination.”

Another approach would be to set up a safe haven⁷ involving the enforcement of no-fly zones that would require even more resources and participation⁸ from allies - making it an even more complicated option.

With no consistent intelligence at this point, the choices remain unclear. 

1 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

2 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。

3 judgments   

判断( judgment的名词复数 )； 鉴定； 评价； 审判

参考例句：

• A peculiar austerity marked his judgments of modern life. 他对现代生活的批评带着一种特殊的苛刻。
• He is swift with his judgments. 他判断迅速。

4 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

5 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

6 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

7 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

8 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。