VOA慢速英语--意大利:北约在地中海部署部队

AS IT IS 2016-04-30 Italy: NATO Force to Deploy¹ in Mediterranean² 意大利:北约在地中海部署部队

Italy says an international force aimed at limiting the number of people sailing from Libya to Europe could be ready by July.

Some observers are worried that the number of people arriving in Europe could jump because travel by land through Greece and the Balkans remains³ blocked.

Most of the new arrivals are migrants. They have fled their home country and chosen to go overseas, usually for economic reasons.

Libyan security forces raided a home in the city of Tripoli last week. They detained more than 200 migrants from across Africa. They also captured a suspected smuggler⁴.

More than 16,000 people sailed from North Africa to Italy in the first three months of 2016. That is almost two times as many as the number who traveled across the Mediterranean during the same period in 2015.

The United States has offered to support a proposed naval⁵ operation off the coast of Libya. The international force would be under the command of NATO (the North Atlantic Treaty Organization).

But it is not known what the ships would do if they find migrants in boats sailing for Europe.

Riccardo Fabiani is a policy expert at the Eurasia Group. He said some observers say the migrants will be returned to their home countries in Africa. But he said it is clear that the African governments do not support that plan. And he said that returning them to Libya is not under consideration because the Libyan government does not have the ability to care for them.

Western nations hope to increase Libya’s ability to feed and house the refugees by supporting a new unity⁶ government in the country. It is known as the Government of National Accord. Its goal is to persuade competing groups from the eastern and western parts of the country to work together.

Fabiani said the unity government is “taking over ministries⁷ and taking over departments and taking over government buildings, and there is backing at most levels for it; however, the situation in the east is very different. And that is where I think we are facing a stalemate.”

The new government welcomed British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond to Tripoli last week. Libyan officials showed him the country’s naval patrol boats.

Hammond said British troops could be sent to train Libyan security forces. Recently, U.S. President Barack Obama said he would not send American troops to help train Libyan forces.

“I do not think it would be welcomed by this new government. It would send the wrong signal. This is a matter that Libyans (must) come together on,” he said.

Words in This Story

smuggler – n. a criminal who moves (someone or something) from one country into another illegally and secretly

stalemate – n. a contest, dispute, competition, etc., in which neither side can gain an advantage or win

1 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。

2 Mediterranean   

adj.地中海的；地中海沿岸的

参考例句：

• The houses are Mediterranean in character.这些房子都属地中海风格。
• Gibraltar is the key to the Mediterranean.直布罗陀是地中海的要冲。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 smuggler   

n.走私者

参考例句：

• The smuggler is in prison tonight, awaiting extradition to Britain. 这名走私犯今晚在监狱，等待引渡到英国。
• The smuggler was finally obliged to inform against his boss. 那个走私犯最后不得不告发他的首领。

5 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

6 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。

7 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。