美国重申致力于北约盟国的集体防御

 　　WASHINGTON, April 29 (Xinhua) -- The United States on Tuesday reiterated¹ its "ironclad commitment" to the collective defense² of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies in the face of growing tensions in eastern Ukraine.

　　Vice³ President Joseph Biden made the commitment in his meeting with Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma of Latvia at the White House, while the prime minister thanked U.S. for its support in the forms of sending paratroopers to his country for drills and joining other NATO members in boosting the bloc's air policing of the Baltic nations.

　　They agreed on the need for the U.S. and Europe to remain united in confronting Russia's "destabilizing actions" in eastern Ukraine and "its illegal occupation" of Crimea, the White House said in a readout of the meeting.

　　It said the duo also discussed the "critical importance" of boosting Europe's energy security through coordinated⁴ actions among European states so as to reduce the continent's dependence⁵ on Russian gas. They agreed that the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership⁶, over which negotiations⁷ are underway, would play a "pivotal role" in creating jobs and supporting economic growth on both sides of the Atlantic.

　　Both the U.S. and the European Union slapped fresh sanctions on more Russian officials and firms Monday, and threatened to target its key sectors⁸ of economy in the event of further destabilizing moves in eastern Ukraine.

　　Russia has rejected suggestions that it is orchestrating events in eastern Ukraine, insisting it has no plan to invade that vast region.

1 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

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 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。

4 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

5 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

6 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。

7 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。

8 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》