VOA慢速英语2009年-IN THE NEWS - Obama, Faced With Two Wars,

This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.

This was the surprise announcement Friday from Oslo, Norway:

THORBJOERN JAGLAND, CHAIRMAN: "The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided¹ that the Nobel Peace Prize for two thousand nine is to be awarded to President Barack Obama for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy² and cooperation between peoples."

And in Washington this was the reaction:
　
President Obama speaks about winning the Peace Prize

BARACK OBAMA: "To be honest, I do not feel that I deserve to be in the company of so many of the transformative figures who have been honored by this prize -- men and women who have inspired me, and inspired the entire world through their courageous³ pursuit of peace. But I also know that this prize reflects the kind of world that those men and women, and all Americans, want to build."

In the United States and around the world, there was praise for the decision, but also criticism. Some suggested that the Nobel committee acted too soon. The last day for nominations⁴ was February first, less than two weeks after the president took office.

Past winners included American presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson. Jimmy Carter and vice⁵ president Al Gore⁶ were honored after their terms. The prize, worth almost a million and a half dollars, will be awarded in Oslo in December.

The announcement came the same week as the eighth anniversary of the war in Afghanistan. President Obama spent the week in a series of meetings to consider future policy in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan. Administration officials say they expect decisions within a few weeks.

They suggest that he is considering a "middle ground." His top commander in Afghanistan is reportedly asking for as many as forty thousand additional troops. General Stanley McChrystal has warned that without more troops, the United States could lose the war.

But Vice President Joe Biden supports a proposal to narrowly target military efforts at al-Qaida, using unmanned aircraft and special forces.

The American-led invasion eight years ago removed the Taliban government that sheltered Osama bin⁷ Laden⁸. His al-Qaida group carried out the terrorist attacks on the United States on September eleventh, two thousand one. Days later, on October seventh, President George W. Bush announced the start of the war.

Today the war is the second longest in American history, after Vietnam. In March, President Obama approved twenty-one thousand more troops. Operations have intensified⁹. More than four hundred American and coalition¹⁰ troops have been killed so far this year, more than during all of last year.

There are also the accusations¹¹ of widespread cheating in the August twentieth presidential election. The results of a partial recount are expected to be announced next week.

Public opinion surveys show falling support among Americans for the war. Forty-eight percent of people in a USA Today/Gallup Poll taken this week said the president should send more troops to Afghanistan. Thirty-eight percent said he should begin to withdraw troops. Seven percent said the number should remain the same.

And there is still the war in Iraq. The goal is to withdraw all combat troops by next September, but leave thousands of troops to train Iraqi forces.

And that's IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English, written by Brianna Blake. I'm Steve Ember.

1 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

2 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

3 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。

4 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

5 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。

6 gore   

n.凝血，血污；v.（动物）用角撞伤，用牙刺破；缝以补裆；顶

参考例句：

• The fox lay dying in a pool of gore.狐狸倒在血泊中奄奄一息。
• Carruthers had been gored by a rhinoceros.卡拉瑟斯被犀牛顶伤了。

7 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

8 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

9 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》

10 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。

11 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。