voa标准英语2008年-UN Chief Says DRC Fighting is Spreading

A regional summit on the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is under way in Nairobi. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an end to the fighting and warned that the conflict risked spilling over into the wider sub-region. Derek Kilner has more from Nairobi.
　

United Nations Secretary- General Ban Ki-moon speaks during opening of Special Consultative Meeting on conflict in Eastern Republic of Congo, in Nairobi, Kenya, 07 Nov 2008

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon joined heads of state from east and central Africa, as well as American and European diplomats¹, for a summit aimed at putting a halt to the recent fighting in eastern DRC between rebels led by Laurent Nkunda, and Congolese government forces. Mr. Ban called on leaders in the region to put pressure on Nkunda, who has launched a renewed offensive in August, despite signing an agreement with the government in January.

"As leaders of Africa, you have an historic responsibility," he said. "This is a critical moment for the Great Lakes region and for Africa as a whole. We must put the cycle of violence behind us. We must build a shared future of stability, peace, development and human rights for all citizens of your countries. I am determined² to work with you to realize these urgent objectives. And I count on your leadership."

Nkunda announced a unilateral cease-fire last week, after advancing to the edge of Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, but clashes have resumed in recent days. The U.N. estimates that some 250,000 people have fled their homes since August, bringing the total number of civilians³ displaced in the region to over one million.

A major goal of the summit will be to improve relations between Congolese President Laurent Kabila and Rwandan President Paul Kagame.
　

Rebel General Laurent Nkunda (C) walks in the courtyard of a house after speaking with the press in the town of Kitshoumba, 02 Nov 2008

Congo accuses Rwanda of backing Nkunda's forces, while Rwanda and Nkunda say the Congolese government is cooperating with the FDLR, a Rwandan Hutu militia⁴, many of whose members participated in Rwanda's 1994 genocide. Nkunda claims he is protecting the region's ethnic⁵ Tutsi community from attacks by the Hutu militia.

Notably⁶ absent from the summit was Nkunda himself. Nkunda has called for direct talks with the Congolese government, but Congo has insisted that any discussion must follow an existing negotiating framework involving all of the various armed groups operating in eastern DRC.

The chairman of the African Union Commission, Jean Ping, appeared to echo that position in explaining Nkunda's absence.

"It is only the members of the Great Lakes who have been invited plus a certain number of countries," he said. "But you know that there you have also other groups who are fighting, like Mai Mai."
　

Uruguayan United Nations soldiers deploy7 to an observation post near the village of Kibati some 12 kilometers north of Goma in eastern Congo, 29 Oct 2008

The UN peacekeeping mission in the Congo, known by its French acronym⁸ MONUC, has clashed with the rebels in recent weeks, and has pledged to defend Goma from any attack by Nkunda's forces. But with it's 17,000 troops spread across various parts of the vast country, the force is overstretched. The UN's Special Representative to the DRC, Alan Doss, said the mission had requested additional troops.

"We have asked for a temporary increase to help us deal with the current situation," he said. "We'll see if the Security Council goes along with it we hope they will. It's not just about numbers it's also about capabilities⁹. You can have soldiers but if they can't move around, they can't be re-supplied it doesn't get you far."

On Friday, a group of NGOs including Human Rights Watch and Oxfam called on the European Union and other countries to contribute additional troops to the UN mission, saying peacekeepers have been unable to halt attacks on civilians in recent days.

1 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 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。

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 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。

5 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。

6 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。

7 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。

8 acronym   

n.首字母简略词，简称

参考例句：

• That's a mouthful of an acronym for a very simple technology.对于一项非常简单的技术来说，这是一个很绕口的缩写词。
• TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.TSDF是处理，储存和处置设施的一个缩写。

9 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