2007年VOA标准英语-US Congressional Report Finds Flaws in Iraq For

By Dan Robinson
Capitol Hill
27 June 2007

A bipartisan congressional report says Iraq's military and police forces are not capable of taking over responsibility for security, and U.S. forces continue to bear the burden of President Bush's military surge. VOA's Dan Robinson reports from Capitol Hill.

The House Armed Services Oversight² and Investigations³ Subcommittee examined the training of Iraq's army and police, focusing on such issues as the Iraqi government's ability to support its own forces, and how various U.S. government agencies have handled the process.

In describing assumptions that Iraqi forces could be reformed as "seriously flawed," the 16-member panel says even now, with nearly 350,000 military and police, operational capability⁴ of Iraqi forces to take on the counter-insurgency fight cannot be determined⁵.

Saying that the Bush administration and Pentagon have focused on "numbers, rather than the quality, capability, and sustainability" of [Iraqi] forces, the report characterizes the capabilities⁶ of Iraqi forces as "very uneven⁷".

While some Iraqi army units appear to perform well, it says, Iraqi police have received less attention and have not been monitored sufficiently⁸ by U.S. and coalition⁹ partners.

Congressman10 Martin Meehan (D-MA), with Todd Akin1 (R-MO) release report on Iraq security forces" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070704/1053330.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Congressman Martin Meehan (D-MA), with Todd Akin (R-MO) release report on Iraq security forces, 27 June 2007

"Despite this expenditure¹¹, we currently have an ISF that is nowhere near ready to operate independently, particularly the police, and what this report lays out is how difficult it has been to reach that goal," said Democratic Congressman Martin Meehan, who chaired the panel.

On the Baghdad Security Plan, involving more than 20,000 U.S. troops working with Iraqis, the report says U.S. forces continue to take the lead, something that will likely slow transferring security burdens to Iraqis, at least in the short term.

The report says the Iraqi government is not yet able to fully¹² fund its forces, with the defense¹³ and interior ministries¹⁴ not fully capable in planning, programming, budgeting, or procuring¹⁵ equipment, and "critically deficient¹⁶" in logistics and personnel accountability.

Congressman Todd Akin comments on Iraq security force report, 27 June 2007

"We have to develop the logistics train so these people can actually support and field an army that can run on its own," said Congressman Todd Akin, who is the Republican co-chairman. "That is the part that is scheduled for this year and next year. That part is not strong, but that is in process."

The report comes as President Bush faces new pressures on Iraq, notably¹⁷ from key Republicans, such as Senator Richard Lugar, saying the time has come for the president to change direction.

"The issue before us is whether we will refocus our policy in Iraq on realistic assessments¹⁸ of what can be achieved and on a sober review of our vital interests in the Middle East," he said.

Presidential spokesman Tony Snow sought to portray¹⁹ Lugar's statements earlier this week on the Senate floor this way.

"What he is trying to come up with is a way of engaging regional powers and also Iraqi powers, the allies, in such a way as to deal with the ongoing²⁰ problems they have had in terms of violence, but also build the institutions that are going to be absolutely necessary in order to have a safe and free and democratic Iraq," he said.

Lugar's statement was cited Wednesday by Tom Lantos, as he opened a hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

"This troop escalation²¹ has in fact been a categorical and catastrophic failure," he said.

Testimony²² by Retired²³ Major General John Batiste, a key critic of the president's Iraq strategy, supported findings of the House panel on weaknesses of Iraqi forces.

"The Iraqi security forces have taken horrendous²⁴ casualties, but do not have the tools to replace U.S. combat formations," he said. "Whether we can trust these Iraqi formations quite frankly²⁵ is another question. Our experience over the past four years is that most Iraqi formations, certainly not all, will either not show up for the fight, or will not hold their ground in the face of the insurgent²⁶ for a myriad²⁷ of reasons."

Among numerous recommendations, the House subcommittee report calls on the Pentagon to send to Congress by the end of July plans for transferring responsibility to Iraqi forces.

Others include a report on whether efforts to improve "deployability" of the Iraqi army are likely to succeed, steps to improve monitoring of Iraq's defense and interior ministries and a report on the extent to which sectarian and militia²⁸ influences are at work in the Iraqi Armed Forces, and options to counter them.

1 akin   

adj.同族的，类似的

参考例句：

• She painted flowers and birds pictures akin to those of earlier feminine painters.她画一些同早期女画家类似的花鸟画。
• Listening to his life story is akin to reading a good adventure novel.听他的人生故事犹如阅读一本精彩的冒险小说。

2 oversight   

n.勘漏，失察，疏忽

参考例句：

• I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
• Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。

3 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

4 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

5 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

6 capabilities   

n.能力( capability的名词复数 )；可能；容量；[复数]潜在能力

参考例句：

• He was somewhat pompous and had a high opinion of his own capabilities. 他有点自大，自视甚高。 来自辞典例句
• Some programmers use tabs to break complex product capabilities into smaller chunks. 一些程序员认为，标签可以将复杂的功能分为每个窗格一组简单的功能。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

7 uneven   

adj.不平坦的，不规则的，不均匀的

参考例句：

• The sidewalk is very uneven—be careful where you walk.这人行道凹凸不平—走路时请小心。
• The country was noted for its uneven distribution of land resources.这个国家以土地资源分布不均匀出名。

8 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

9 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

10 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

11 expenditure   

n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗

参考例句：

• The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
• The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。

12 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。

13 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。

14 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。

15 procuring   

v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的现在分词 )；拉皮条

参考例句：

• He was accused of procuring women for his business associates. 他被指控为其生意合伙人招妓。 来自辞典例句
• She had particular pleasure, in procuring him the proper invitation. 她特别高兴为他争得这份体面的邀请。 来自辞典例句

16 deficient   

adj.不足的，不充份的，有缺陷的

参考例句：

• The crops are suffering from deficient rain.庄稼因雨量不足而遭受损害。
• I always have been deficient in selfconfidence and decision.我向来缺乏自信和果断。

17 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

18 assessments   

n.评估( assessment的名词复数 )；评价；（应偿付金额的）估定；（为征税对财产所作的）估价

参考例句：

• He was shrewd in his personal assessments. 他总能对人作出精明的评价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Surveys show about two-thirds use such assessments, while half employ personality tests. 调查表明，约有三分之二的公司采用了这种测评；而一半的公司则采用工作人员个人品质测试。 来自百科语句

19 portray   

v.描写，描述；画(人物、景象等)

参考例句：

• It is difficult to portray feelings in words.感情很难用言语来描写。
• Can you portray the best and worst aspects of this job?您能描述一下这份工作最好与最坏的方面吗？

20 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

21 escalation   

n.扩大，增加

参考例句：

• The threat of nuclear escalation remains. 核升级的威胁仍旧存在。 来自辞典例句
• Escalation is thus an aspect of deterrence and of crisis management. 因此逐步升级是威慑和危机处理的一个方面。 来自辞典例句

22 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

23 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

24 horrendous   

adj.可怕的，令人惊惧的

参考例句：

• He described it as the most horrendous experience of his life.他形容这是自己一生中最可怕的经历。
• The mining industry in China has a horrendous safety record.中国的煤矿工业具有令人不安的安全记录。

25 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

26 insurgent   

adj.叛乱的，起事的；n.叛乱分子

参考例句：

• Faruk says they are threatened both by insurgent and government forces.法鲁克说，他们受到暴乱分子和政府军队的双重威胁。
• The insurgent mob assembled at the gate of the city park.叛变的暴徒聚在市立公园的门口。

27 myriad   

adj.无数的；n.无数，极大数量

参考例句：

• They offered no solution for all our myriad problems.对于我们数不清的问题他们束手无策。
• I had three weeks to make a myriad of arrangements.我花了三个星期做大量准备工作。

28 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。