VOA标准英语2008年-Bush Ends Israel Visit, Heads to Kuwait

By Paula Wolfson
Jerusalem
11 January 2008

President Bush says he will return to the Middle East in May to help push the peace process forward and mark Israel's 60th anniversary. VOA's Paula Wolfson reports the president spoke¹ at Israel's main airport as he prepared to leave for Kuwait.

A military honor guard took its place on the tarmac of Ben Gurion airport as President Bush approached Air Force One.

He walked over to reporters standing² at the foot of the plane and told them he saw a real chance for peace. He thanked his hosts and told Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and President Shimon Peres that he wants to help.

The comments came at the end of an historic three-day visit to Israel and the West Bank during which Mr. Bush spent hours in separate discussions with Prime Minister Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

In a statement Thursday, he said his conversations convinced him an agreement is possible by the time he leaves office next January. He said the objective must be an end to Israeli occupation, and he warned both sides that difficult political concessions³ will be necessary.

After all the official business, Mr. Bush ended his trip to Israel Friday on a symbolic⁴ note - paying homage⁵ to the victims of the Nazi⁶ holocaust⁷.

The president stood in the great stone hall of remembrance at Yad Vashem - Israel's holocaust memorial - as a children's choir⁸ sang a song of hope. He reignited a memorial flame and placed a wreath on a concrete slab⁹ that covers the ashes of victims of six concentration camps.

There was a moment of silence, and then a chanted prayer.

As he emerged from the hall, Mr. Bush said Yad Vashem is a sobering reminder¹⁰ that evil exists and must be resisted.

"I was most impressed that people in the face of horror and evil would not forsake¹¹ their god, and in the face of unspeakable crimes against humanity, brave souls - young and old - stood strong for what they believe," he said.

After his visit to Yad Vashem, President Bush helicoptered to the Galilee region for a tour of Christian¹² holy sites.

The next stop on the president's Mideast journey is Kuwait - the first of five Arab states on his itinerary¹³. Mr. Bush will hold private talks with the Emir, and will travel to a U.S. military installation near Kuwait City. While at the base, he will consult with his top military commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, and the senior U.S. diplomat¹⁴ in Baghdad, Ambassador Ryan Crocker.

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。

4 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

5 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

6 Nazi   

n.纳粹分子，adj.纳粹党的，纳粹的

参考例句：

• They declare the Nazi regime overthrown and sue for peace.他们宣布纳粹政权已被推翻，并出面求和。
• Nazi closes those war criminals inside their concentration camp.纳粹把那些战犯关在他们的集中营里。

7 holocaust   

n.大破坏；大屠杀

参考例句：

• The Auschwitz concentration camp always remind the world of the holocaust.奥辛威茨集中营总是让世人想起大屠杀。
• Ahmadinejad is denying the holocaust because he's as brutal as Hitler was.内贾德否认大屠杀，因为他像希特勒一样残忍。

8 choir   

n.唱诗班，唱诗班的席位，合唱团，舞蹈团；v.合唱

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• The church choir is singing tonight.今晚教堂歌唱队要唱诗。

9 slab   

n.平板，厚的切片；v.切成厚板，以平板盖上

参考例句：

• This heavy slab of oak now stood between the bomb and Hitler.这时笨重的橡木厚板就横在炸弹和希特勒之间了。
• The monument consists of two vertical pillars supporting a horizontal slab.这座纪念碑由两根垂直的柱体构成，它们共同支撑着一块平板。

10 reminder   

n.提醒物，纪念品；暗示，提示

参考例句：

• I have had another reminder from the library.我又收到图书馆的催还单。
• It always took a final reminder to get her to pay her share of the rent.总是得发给她一份最后催缴通知，她才付应该交的房租。

11 forsake   

vt.遗弃，抛弃；舍弃，放弃

参考例句：

• She pleaded with her husband not to forsake her.她恳求丈夫不要抛弃她。
• You must forsake your bad habits.你必须革除你的坏习惯。

12 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

13 itinerary   

n.行程表，旅行路线；旅行计划

参考例句：

• The two sides have agreed on the itinerary of the visit.双方商定了访问日程。
• The next place on our itinerary was Silistra.我们行程的下一站是锡利斯特拉。

14 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。