VOA常速英语2007-US Policy on Missile Defense Appears Unclear

By Andre de Nesnera
Washington
24 October 2007

U.S. plans to deploy¹ a missile defense² system in Eastern Europe continue to be a major source of contention³ between the United States and Russia. In this report from Washington, VOA Senior Correspondent André de Nesnera looks at the latest statements by senior U.S. officials on the controversial defense system and how they are being interpreted.

U.S. officials say the proposed missile defense system - made up of 10 missile interceptors in Poland and a radar⁴ in the Czech Republic - is needed to defend against potential threats from countries such as Iran. They say it is not targeted against Russia.

But Russian officials have strongly criticized the proposed missile defense system.

Michael Levi, an arms control expert at the Council on Foreign Relations says there are two reasons behind Moscow's objections.

"The one that is expressed publicly is that the missile defense could threaten the Russian [nuclear] deterrent," he noted⁵.  "There is very much a hollow ring to that. Russia's nuclear weapons could overwhelm anything the United States would deploy. The deeper concern that Russia presumably has, is that this deployment⁶ in Poland and the Czech Republic signals a deepening of relations between the United States and former Soviet⁷ satellites. That is what fundamentally is disturbing to Russia."

On Tuesday, during a speech to the National Defense University, President Bush repeated his administration's view that a missile defense system is necessary.

"The need for missile defense in Europe is real, and I believe it is urgent," said Mr. Bush.  "Iran is pursuing the technology that could be used to produce nuclear weapons, and ballistic missiles of increasing range that could deliver them."

Earlier in the day, speaking in the Czech Republic's capital, Prague, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates appeared to set a softer tone, saying the U.S. missiles may not be activated⁸ immediately after being deployed⁹.

"We have not fully¹⁰ developed this proposal," he said.  "But the idea was we would go forward with the negotiations¹¹, we would complete the negotiations, we would develop the sites, build the sites - but perhaps delay activating¹² them until there was concrete proof of the threat from Iran."

Arms control experts are discussing whether President Bush and Secretary Gates sent out mixed signals.

Daryl Kimball, head of the independent Arms Control Association, says there is no disagreement between the two men.

"Superficially, it may appear as though there is some disconnect," he noted.  "But what Secretary of Defense Gates is saying is, and what President Bush is saying is that we want to move ahead and build the interceptor site in Poland, build the radar in the Czech Republic on our current schedule. What Gates is hinting at is that the 'on switch' will not be turned, until the United States and Russia agree that there is an urgent Iranian threat. They [Bush and Gates] are both saying that we should go ahead with building, or beginning to build these sites in 2009-2010, so they can be completed sometime around 2012 or 2013."

But Michael Levi, from the Council on Foreign Relations, says the statements do appear contradictory¹³.

"The president describes the need for missile defense in Europe to be 'urgent.' Bob Gates talks about delaying activation¹⁴ of the missile defense sites until we actually saw what he calls 'definitive¹⁵ proof of the threat' - Iranian missile testing and so on, as he puts that," he said.  "Those appear to be contradictory. If a threat is urgent, then you do not talk about waiting for proof of that threat, for more knowledge of that threat."

Levi does not believe that either President Bush or Secretary Gates, or their spokesmen, would clarify their statements. He expects them to say that the missile defense system in Eastern Europe is part of a discussion with Russia, and leave it at that.

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 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。

3 contention   

n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张

参考例句：

• The pay increase is the key point of contention. 加薪是争论的焦点。
• The real bone of contention,as you know,is money.你知道，争论的真正焦点是钱的问题。

4 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

7 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

8 activated   

adj. 激活的 动词activate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The canister is filled with activated charcoal.蒸气回收罐中充满了活性炭。

9 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

10 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

11 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

12 activating   

活动的，活性的

参考例句：

• "I didn't say we'd got to stop activating the masses! “我并没说就此不发动！ 来自子夜部分
• Presumably both the very small size and activating influence of fluorine atoms contribute to this exception. 这大概是由于氟原子半径小和活性高这两个原因的影响，氟原子对这种例外做出了贡献。

13 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

14 activation   

n. 激活，催化作用

参考例句：

• A computer controls the activation of an air bag.电脑控制着气囊的启动。

15 definitive   

adj.确切的，权威性的；最后的，决定性的

参考例句：

• This book is the definitive guide to world cuisine.这本书是世界美食的权威指南。
• No one has come up with a definitive answer as to why this should be so.至于为什么该这样，还没有人给出明确的答复。