VOA慢速英语2014 乌克兰总统称军队将保卫马里乌波尔港口

 

Ukrainian President: Troops Will Defend Port of Mariupolu

Ukraine’s president went to the southeastern Ukrainian port of Mariupol on Monday to show support for its 500,000 people. People in Mariupol have been digging long narrow holes around the city to try to protect it from pro-Russia rebels.

Petro Poroshenko spoke¹ to workers at a factory. He promised Ukrainian forces would defend the city against separatist forces. The fighters moved toward Mariupol last week before a ceasefire took effect.

Separately, leading United States lawmakers have invited Mr. Poroshenko to speak to Congress when he visits Washington later this month. He is travelling to the U.S. capital to meet with President Obama.

Afghan Presidential Candidate Rejects Audit² Results

Afghan presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah has rejected the results of an investigation³ into the recent presidential election. The United Nations led the investigation. The election was June 14th.

On Monday, Mr. Abdullah said he won the election. And he said efforts to form a coalition⁴ government have not been successful.

The recount of the 8 million votes was completed September 5th. But the final count has not been released.

Mr. Abdullah has blamed cheating for the election of Ashraf Ghani. On Sunday, President Obama spoke to both of the men and urged them to agree on a national unity⁵ government as soon as possible.

US Investors⁶ Show Little Interest in Alibaba 

Few American investors are showing interest in buying shares of the Chinese company Alibaba.

It sells more products online than Amazon and eBay combined. It could raise $21 billion in its first public sale of stock.

An official with the financial company TD Ameritrade said interest in Alibaba stock is less than it was for Facebook and Twitter.

One financial advisor⁷ said many American investors do not know about Alibaba. He said some who do know of it are worried about the possible influence of the Chinese government on the company.

Obama to Announce Plan Against Islamic State Group

President Obama will speak to the American people on Wednesday. He will talk about plan to deal with the threat from Islamic State militants⁸.

He told NBC News that he will talk about the need to, in his words, “go on the offense” against the extremist group.  The group has taken control of parts of Iraq and Syria.

He said the United States would not act alone but would be part of an international coalition.  He said the coalition would carry out airstrikes and support Iraqi and Kurdish troops fighting the militants.  He has said he does not plan to deploy⁹ the U.S. army.

Mr. Obama said the group is not now a threat to the United States. But he said it could become a serious one if permitted to capture more territory and gather more weapons and fighters.

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 audit   

v.审计；查帐；核对；旁听

参考例句：

• Each year they audit our accounts and certify them as being true and fair.他们每年对我们进行账务审核，以确保其真实无误。
• As usual,the yearly audit will take place in December.跟往常一样，年度审计将在十二月份进行。

3 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

4 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。

5 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

6 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

7 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

8 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

9 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。