VOA慢速英语--美国公布结束委内瑞拉权力斗争计划

The United States is prepared to end sanctions on Venezuela if its political leaders agree to support a proposal to form a temporary government.

U.S. officials say the proposal would require both Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and opposition¹ leader Juan Guaidó to step aside. Instead, a five-person council would govern the country.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced the proposal earlier this week. It is similar to a plan offered last weekend by Guaidó. About 60 countries recognize him as Venezuela's rightful leader.

The proposal shows how growing concerns about the coronavirus and its spread threaten to overpower the South American nation. Venezuela's healthcare system and economy are already weak, U.S. officials say.

"This framework can provide a path that ends the suffering and opens the path to a brighter future for Venezuela," said Pompeo on Tuesday. He spoke² to reporters in Washington.

Under the proposal, both Maduro and Guaidó would step aside and give power to a five-member council of state, which would govern the country. The group would rule until presidential and parliamentary elections can be held within six to 12 months.

The military high command is the traditional arbiter³ of political disputes in Venezuela. It has been providing support to Maduro. Under the proposal, the military command would remain in place while the temporary government is in power.

Four of the council's members would be appointed by the opposition-controlled National Assembly that Guaidó leads. To gain support from the ruling socialist⁴ party, a two-thirds majority would be required. The fifth member would serve as acting⁵ president until elections are held. That person would be named by the council's other members. Neither Maduro nor Guaidó would serve on the council. However, Pompeo told reporters that under the plan, Guaidó would be free to run for president when elections are held.

"The hope is that this setup promotes the selection of people who are very broadly respected and known as people who can work with the other side," said Elliott Abrams. He spoke to The Associated Press.

Abrams is the U.S. Special Representative for Venezuela.

The plan also describes for the first time U.S. requirements for lifting sanctions against Maduro, his top aides and the country's oil industry. That industry now provides nearly all of Venezuela's foreign income.

The U.S. sanctions would stay in place against people accused of serious human rights abuses and drug trafficking. However, individuals who face restrictions⁶ because of their positions inside the Maduro government would be helped. These include members of the supreme⁷ court, electoral council and constitutional assembly members.

However, for sanctions to end, Abrams said, the council would need to work well and all foreign military forces — from Cuba or Russia — would need to leave Venezuela.

For months, the U.S. government has used economic and diplomatic pressure to try to break the military's support for Maduro. Last week, U.S. government lawyers brought charges of drug trafficking and money laundering⁸ against Maduro and other government officials. They include the defense⁹ minister and head of the supreme court.

Yet a power-sharing agreement is unlikely to win Maduro's support unless his future includes protection from the U.S. justice system, David Smilde said. He is with the Washington Office on Latin America, a research group.

"It's a little hard to see how this is going to be convincing to the major players in the government," he said. It also would require the support of Cuba, China or Russia -- all of which support Maduro.

A top Trump¹⁰ administration official said Monday that the United States is willing to negotiate with Maduro about terms for his leaving.

Last September, Guaidó proposed a similar transitional government in talks with Maduro officials. But the plan failed to win much acceptance.

Words in This Story

sanction – n. threatened punishment for disobeying a rule or law

framework – n. a set of ideas meant to be developed into a more complete plan

arbiter – n. a person who can settle arguments

selection – n. the act of choosing something or someone from a group

aide – n. a person who acts as an assistant

promote – v. to support

income – n. earnings¹¹; wages

money laundering – n. the illegal process of hiding money passed to an individual or organization through a complex series of financial activities

convince – v. to persuade; to cause someone to accept or believe something

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 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。

3 arbiter   

n.仲裁人，公断人

参考例句：

• Andrew was the arbiter of the disagreement.安德鲁是那场纠纷的仲裁人。
• Experiment is the final arbiter in science.实验是科学的最后仲裁者。

4 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

5 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

6 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

7 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

8 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

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 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。

11 earnings   

n.工资收人；利润，利益，所得

参考例句：

• That old man lives on the earnings of his daughter.那个老人靠他女儿的收入维持生活。
• Last year there was a 20% decrease in his earnings.去年他的收入减少了20%。