VOA慢速英语2015 奥巴马参加印度共和国日大游行

 

Obama Attends India's Republic Day Parade 奥巴马参加印度共和国日大游行

Rain has done little to reduce the excitement around President Barack Obama’s visit to India. The president watched a military parade involving thousands of Indian troops on Monday.

The parade was part of Republic Day celebrations. Mr. Obama was the first United States president to attend the event, which celebrates India’s first constitution as an independent state.

On Sunday, the president met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The two men announced they have reached a “breakthrough” in a nuclear power agreement.

The United States signed an agreement with India in 2008 to provide civilian¹ nuclear technology. But the treaty’s enactment² has been delayed because of an Indian law. The measure makes builders and suppliers of the equipment responsible for damages in case of an accident.

Both sides agreed Sunday to set up a financial protection system that does not force India to change its laws.

Greek voted for party against spending cuts

Greek voters ousted³ the New Democracy Party from power in general elections on Sunday. The elections made Alexis Tsipras, the chief of the Syriza Party, the country’s new prime Minister. He is the youngest Greek prime minister in 150 years.

Syriza fell just two seats short in parliament of the 151 needed to rule on its own, without forming a coalition⁴ government.

The election results are likely to place Greece in conflict with the European Union and international creditors⁵. Mr. Tsipras has promised to end years of tax increases and cuts in government programs. He has already gained the support of the Independent Greeks party. That could mean he could form a ruling coalition soon.

After the results were announced, Mr. Tsipras held talks with Panos Kammenos, the leader of Independent Greeks. The party has little in common with Syriza. But both oppose the international financial rescue plan for Greece.

Deadly violence in Ukraine

The Ukrainian military announced Monday that seven of its soldiers have been killed in the past day during fighting in the country’s east. Officials say more than 20 soldiers were wounded in the violence.

Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists have clashed⁶ repeatedly in recent days. The fighting has been described as the worst since the two sides agreed on a ceasefire in September. President Obama and European leaders threatened new action against Russia after rebels launch a deadly rocket attack on the Ukrainian port of Mariupol on Saturday.

Airline website attacked

The official website of Malaysia Airlines has been attacked. A group claiming to support the Islamic State militant⁷ group says it carried out the attack.

The company’s website was changed. At first, the site showed a message saying “404 – Plane Not Found.” Another message read, “Hacked by Cyber Caliphate,” with a picture of an Airbus A380 passenger airplane. Another message read, “ISIS will prevail.”

The Malaysia Airlines homepage was later changed to an image of a lizard⁸ in a top hat. The claim of responsibility was changed to “Lizard Squad⁹ – Official Cyber Caliphate,” with a link to the group’s Twitter account.

Words in This Story

visit – n., the act of going to a place for a short period; v – to go to or come to a place for a short time for friendly or business reasons

parade – n., a group of people and vehicles moving together to celebrate a special event or anniversary

independent – adj., not influenced by or controlled by another or others; free; separate

civilian – adj., not military

nuclear – adj., of or about the energy produced by splitting atoms or bringing them together; of or about weapons that explode by using energy from atoms

1 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

2 enactment   

n.演出，担任…角色；制订，通过

参考例句：

• Enactment refers to action.演出指行为的表演。
• We support the call for the enactment of a Bill of Rights.我们支持要求通过《权利法案》的呼声。

3 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

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 creditors   

n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 clashed   

发出撞击声（clash的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The color of the curtains clashed with the color of the carpet. 窗帘的颜色与地毯的颜色不协调。
• Her wedding clashed with my examination, so I couldn't go. 她的婚礼与我的考试冲突，因此我无法参加。

7 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

8 lizard   

n.蜥蜴，壁虎

参考例句：

• A chameleon is a kind of lizard.变色龙是一种蜥蜴。
• The lizard darted out its tongue at the insect.蜥蜴伸出舌头去吃小昆虫。

9 squad   

n.班，小队，小团体；vt.把…编成班或小组

参考例句：

• The squad leader ordered the men to mark time.班长命令战士们原地踏步。
• A squad is the smallest unit in an army.班是军队的最小构成单位。