WFP Prepares for Possible War in Iraq

Broadcast: Jan 30 2003

 

 

United Nations relief agencies (like the World Food Program) say they are positioning supplies in countries neighboring Iraq，to be ready in case of a war.

 

The World Food Program, like the rest of the United Nations, says it hopes the crisis over Iraq's weapons program will be resolved peacefully. But, food agency spokeswoman Christiane Bertiaume says it is making ¹⁾contingency plans to provide food aid, in case there is a war.

 

"What we are doing right now is to pre-position food in neighboring countries for around 900,000 people for a three-month period," she explained. "But this is really a working figure, because the food could be given to less people for a longer period of time, or to more people for a shorter period of time. It would all depend on the development of the situation."

 

Ms. Bertiaume says that the U.N. food agency would need permission to truck food across the territory of Jordan, Syria, Iran and Turkey.

 

She says it would cost about $8 million to implement¹ the plan, but so far, there have been no contributions. She says the agency is using its emergency reserve funds to put the food in place.

 

In addition, Ms. Bertiaume says that about a half-million tons of food aid are already being shipped into Iraq every month under the U.N.-administered oil-for-food program. The United Nations estimates that more than half of Iraq's 22 million people could not survive without the deliveries of flour, rice, beans, milk and cooking oil. Ms. Bertiaume says the World Food Program will try to keep that food flowing as well, if there is a war.

 

"The World Food Program plan is to ensure that the most immediately ²⁾vulnerable Iraqi people who are dependent on the food ³⁾ration² from the oil-for-food program will not go hungry in case of war," she said.

 

Ms. Bertiaume says that all U.N. agencies are coordinating³ their efforts, and working alongside the International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, to be ready to respond to humanitarian⁴ needs if there is an attack on Iraq.

 

Dale Gavlak VOA news, Geneva.

 

1)    contingency[kEn5tindVEnsi]n.偶然, 可能性, 意外事故,

2)    vulnerable [5vQlnErEb(E)l]adj.易受攻击的, 易受...的攻击

3)    ration [5rAFEn]n.定量, 配给量, 定量配给v.配给, 分发,

1 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

2 ration   

n.定量(pl.)给养，口粮；vt.定量供应

参考例句：

• The country cut the bread ration last year.那个国家去年削减面包配给量。
• We have to ration the water.我们必须限量用水。

3 coordinating   

v.使协调，使调和( coordinate的现在分词 )；协调；协同；成为同等

参考例句：

• He abolished the Operations Coordinating Board and the Planning Board. 他废除了行动协调委员会和计划委员会。 来自辞典例句
• He's coordinating the wedding, and then we're not going to invite him? 他是来协调婚礼的，难道我们不去请他？ 来自电影对白

4 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。