美国国家公共电台 NPR Russia Says Agreements Were Discussed With Trump On Syria. The U.S. Is Silent

 

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

The White House says President Trump¹ is inviting² Russian President Vladimir Putin to Washington this fall. Well, before then, there are mixed messages to clear up. Russian officials say Trump and Putin agreed in Helsinki to work together in Syria. The U.S. general overseeing the fight against ISIS in Syria and Iraq says he has received no guidance about what that means. Here's NPR's Tom Bowman.

TOM BOWMAN, BYLINE³: General Joe Votel told reporters in a video teleconference that he's only working with Russia on what's called deconfliction. That means the two militaries communicate so that aircraft are not involved in accidents or mishaps⁴ in the skies over Syria.

(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)

GEN JOSEPH VOTEL: First off, let me just reiterate⁵ - no new guidance for me as a result of the Helsinki discussions as of yet.

BOWMAN: The guidance Votel does have is to finish off the Islamic State, clearing the final cluster of fighters along the border with Iraq. Russia meanwhile is focused on something different - propping⁶ up the Assad regime and attacking anti-Syrian rebels, some of whom are being supported by the United States.

So far, Russian officials are the only ones providing information about any agreements in Helsinki. The Pentagon has been silent, and the White House put out a statement saying it was reviewing the discussions between the two presidents and, quote, "considering possible next steps." During his press conference at the Helsinki summit this week, President Trump was asked about the U.S. and Russian militaries cooperating in Syria. And he had this to say.

(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)

PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Our militaries do get along very well, and they do coordinate⁷ in Syria and other places.

BOWMAN: But the two militaries do not coordinate in Syria. And a law passed four years ago after Russia's seizure⁸ of Crimea actually prohibits the two militaries from working together. General Votel picked up on that with reporters.

(SOUNDBITE OF PRESS CONFERENCE)

VOTEL: It is true the National Defense⁹ Authorization¹⁰ Act as a law prohibits us from coordinating¹¹, synchronizing¹², collaborating¹³ with Russian forces, so that does guide our activities.

BOWMAN: So how could the U.S. work with Russia in Syria? The general said Congress would have to take some type of action, maybe come up with a waiver. Tom Bowman, NPR News, Washington.

1 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

2 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 mishaps   

n.轻微的事故，小的意外( mishap的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a series of mishaps 一连串的倒霉事
• In spite of one or two minor mishaps everything was going swimmingly. 尽管遇到了一两件小小的不幸，一切都进行得很顺利。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 reiterate   

v.重申，反复地说

参考例句：

• Let me reiterate that we have absolutely no plans to increase taxation.让我再一次重申我们绝对没有增税的计划。
• I must reiterate that our position on this issue is very clear.我必须重申我们对这一项议题的立场很清楚。

6 propping   

支撑

参考例句：

• You can usually find Jack propping up the bar at his local. 你常常可以看见杰克频繁出没于他居住的那家酒店。
• The government was accused of propping up declining industries. 政府被指责支持日益衰败的产业。

7 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

8 seizure   

n.没收；占有；抵押

参考例句：

• The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
• The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。

9 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。

10 authorization   

n.授权，委任状

参考例句：

• Anglers are required to obtain prior authorization from the park keeper.垂钓者必须事先得到公园管理者的许可。
• You cannot take a day off without authorization.未经批准你不得休假。

11 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

12 synchronizing   

v.同步，整步adj.同步的

参考例句：

• How to monitoring synchronizing error, and using 80196KC to control exciter. 以及同步电动机失步检测及以80196KC进行控制的方法。 来自互联网
• A synchronizing labyrinth must be created at a special, predetermined place. 同步迷宫必须建立在一个特殊的，预先确定的地方。 来自互联网

13 collaborating   

合作( collaborate的现在分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• Joe is collaborating on the work with a friend. 乔正与一位朋友合作做那件工作。
• He was not only learning from but also collaborating with Joseph Thomson. 他不仅是在跟约瑟福？汤姆逊学习，而且也是在和他合作。