2007年VOA标准英语-Military Surge in Iraq Assessed in US Congress

By Dan Robinson
Capitol Hill
11 September 2007
 

General David Petraeus, the U.S. commander in Iraq, faced tough questions Monday while testifying before two congressional committees about what he says has been significant progress against al-Qaida and extremist groups in Iraq. VOA's Dan Robinson reports, Petraeus told lawmakers he would reduce U.S. forces by the middle of next year to pre-military surge levels, while he and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker, cautioned against any rapid U.S. departure.

U.S. Gen. David Petraeus testifies before the House Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, on the situation of Iraq , 10 Sep 2007

Republicans and Democrats¹ took turns questioning Petraeus about the effectiveness of the military surge ordered by President Bush last January and which began in earnest this past June.

From majority Democrats, including the two committee chairmen, he faced skeptical² questions about the Iraqi government's ability to act on political reconciliation³ and other issues.

Armed Services chairman Ike Skelton and Foreign Affairs chairman Tom Lantos:

SKELTON: "The witnesses must tell us why we should continue sending our young men and women to fight and die if the Iraqis won't make the tough sacrifices leading to reconciliation."

LANTOS: "We cannot take any of this administration's assertions on Iraq at face value any more and no amount of charts or statistics will improve its credibility."

Petraeus said objectives of the surge, which brought U.S. forces in Iraq to about 168,000, are in large measure being met with substantial although uneven⁴ progress by U.S. and Iraqi forces.

But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in a written statement, called continuation of the military surge unacceptable and asked for "a much more aggressive timetable than the one outlined" by General Petraeus."

Petraeus pointed⁵ to Al-Anbar province, where local leaders and officials turned against al-Qaida, as a primary example of progress.

"A year ago the province was assessed as lost politically," said General Petraeus. "Today it is a model of what happens when local leaders and citizens decide to oppose al-Qaida, and reject its Taliban-like ideology⁶."

He also said al-Qaida in Iraq and its affiliates⁷ suffered setbacks. Shia militia⁸ and Iranian-supported extremist groups, he said, were disrupted and sectarian violence in Baghdad and other areas is down.

Responding to suggestions by Democrats and anti-war critics that his report was simply an expression of President Bush's position, Petraeus said it had been cleared with neither the White House nor the Pentagon, and had the support of the military Joint⁹ Chiefs of Staff.

Congressman¹⁰ Duncan Hunter was among Republicans accusing Democrats of trying to discredit¹¹ Petraeus for partisan¹² political reasons.

"The idea that we have spent the last week prepping the battlefield by attacking the credibility of the messenger [Petraeus] is something that I think goes against the great tradition of this House," said Congressman Hunter.

While Petraeus envisions withdrawing five military brigades from Iraq by July of 2008, beginning with a Marine¹³ brigade this month, he not be drawn¹⁴ into speculation¹⁵ about further reductions, and warned against any precipitous withdrawal¹⁶.

"Our experience in Iraq has repeatedly shown that projecting too far into the future is not just difficult, it can be misleading and even hazardous," he said. "The events of the past six months underscore that point."

U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker testifies before before the House Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, on the situation of Iraq, 10 Sep 2007

U.S. Ambassador Crocker expressed his frustration¹⁷ with the lack of political progress by Iraq's government. However, he pointed to what he sees as signs Iraqis have the will to overcome sectarian differences.

"Leaders from all communities openly acknowledge that a focus on sectarian gains has led to poor governments and served Iraqis badly, and many claim to be ready to make the sacrifices that will be needed to put government performance ahead of sectarian and ethnic¹⁸ concerns," said Ambassador Crocker.

Crocker also warned against a premature¹⁹ U.S. withdrawal, asserting this would only help Iran, and benefit al-Qaida in Iraq.

Monday's public hearing was marked by interruptions from protesters shouting "Out of Iraq" and other slogans. Capitol police reported four arrests, including anti-war activist²⁰ Cindy Sheehan.

Ambassador Crocker and General Petraeus appear Tuesday before two Senate panels. The White House is due to send Congress a separate report on Iraq by September 15.

1 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

3 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

4 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。

5 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。

6 ideology   

n.意识形态，(政治或社会的)思想意识

参考例句：

• The ideology has great influence in the world.这种思想体系在世界上有很大的影响。
• The ideal is to strike a medium between ideology and inspiration.我的理想是在意识思想和灵感鼓动之间找到一个折衷。

7 affiliates   

附属企业( affiliate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She affiliates with an academic society. 她是某学术团体的成员。
• For example, these security affiliates participated in the floating of 19,000,000,000 of issues in 1927. 例如，这些证券发行机构在1927年的流通证券中，就提供了一百九十亿美元的证券。

8 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。

9 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

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 discredit   

vt.使不可置信；n.丧失信义；不信，怀疑

参考例句：

• Their behaviour has bought discredit on English football.他们的行为败坏了英国足球运动的声誉。
• They no longer try to discredit the technology itself.他们不再试图怀疑这种技术本身。

12 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

13 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

14 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

15 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

16 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

17 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

18 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

19 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

20 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。