2006年VOA标准英语-Bush Warns Against 'Fake' Peace in Mideast

By Paula Wolfson
Washington
27 July 2006
 
President Bush says he wants to see an end to the fighting between Israeli forces and Lebanese-based Hezbollah militants¹ as soon as possible. But Mr. Bush is cautioning against a "fake" peace.

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George W. Bush   
  
The president says he wants a lasting² peace in the region. But he says one that does not address the root causes of the conflict will only provide a brief respite³ until fighting resumes.

"Look, as soon as we can get this resolved the better, obviously," he said. "But it must be real, and it cannot be fake."

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with the Romanian president, Mr. Bush said peace will not come until something is done to remove the threat posed by Hezbollah. He also pointed⁴ to the link between the Lebanese-based militants and Iran.

 "Hezbollah attacked Israel. I know Hezbollah is connected to Iran. And now is the time for the world to confront this danger," he said.

Lebanese man uses a pillow to extinguish a small fire after Israeli missile strike   
  
Mr. Bush stressed once again that he is concerned about humanitarian⁵ conditions in Lebanon, and the toll⁶ the conflict is taking on the Lebanese people. He renewed his call on Israel to exercise caution, but stopped short of direct criticism of Israeli military tactics.

"We care deeply about the loss of life, and I am troubled by the destruction that is taking place in Lebanon. We grieve when Lebanese families lose innocent life. I have urged that there has to be caution when dealing⁷ with Hezbollah. And yet I understand that whatever is done diplomatically must address the root cause - and the root cause is terrorist activities," he said.

The president said a lot of diplomacy⁸ is underway to end the conflict. A multi-national conference Wednesday in Rome ended without agreement on a ceasefire, but the president said it showed determination to resolve the conflict and move forward.

1 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。

2 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

3 respite   

n.休息，中止，暂缓

参考例句：

• She was interrogated without respite for twenty-four hours.她被不间断地审问了二十四小时。
• Devaluation would only give the economy a brief respite.贬值只能让经济得到暂时的缓解。

4 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

5 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。

6 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

7 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

8 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。