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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
By Paula Wolfson
Ljubljana, Slovenia
10 June 2008
The United States and the European Union have agreed to step up pressure on Iran. VOA's Paula Wolfson reports from Ljubljana, Slovenia, Iran's nuclear program was one of many issues discussed during talks between U.S. President George Bush and EU leaders.
U.S. President George W. Bush (l) takes part in a joint1 press conference with Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa at Brdo Castle in Kranj, Slovenia, 10 Jun 2008 |
President Bush says the United States and Europe must join forces to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons
"One country cannot solve all problems. I fully2 agree with that. A group of countries can send a clear message to the Iranians and that is: We are going to continue to isolate3 you, we will continue to work on sanctions, we will find new sanctions if need be, if you continue to deny the just demands of a free world," said Mr. Bush.
In their summit communiqué, the U.S. and EU leaders speak of imposing4 economic sanctions beyond those already put in place by the United Nations if Iran refuses to suspend nuclear enrichment. President Bush says a nuclear-armed Iran would be a dangerous place, stressing Tehran has a decision to make.
"They can either face isolation5 or they can have better relations with all of us if the verifiably suspend their enrichment program," added President Bush.
There was no breakthrough at the summit on another lead item on the agenda: climate change. At a news conference after the talks, Mr. Bush repeated his opposition6 to mandatory7 restrictions8 on emissions9 of so-called "greenhouse gases". But he said he remains10 hopeful a common strategy can be achieved.
"I think we can actually get an agreement on global climate change during my presidency11, just so you know," he said.
The prime minister of Slovenia, which currently holds the revolving12 presidency of the European Council, represented the 27 EU members at the summit.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso also took part in the meeting. He says it is important that this summit occurred in a relatively13 young democracy - part of a post Cold War growth spurt14 in EU membership.
"And now we have from the Atlantic to the Black Sea, from the Mediterranean15 to the Baltic Sea, democratic countries living together in peace," he said.
They had a broad agenda for the summit, which only lasted a few hours - from the Middle-East, to settling a trans-Atlantic dispute over access to European markets for U.S. chickens.
On security issues, there was a demonstration16 of shared values with a call for China to engage in "results-oriented" talks on Tibet with representatives of the Dalai Lama.
The summit also urged the government of Zimbabwe to refrain from violence and voter intimidation17 and ensure a free and fair presidential run-off election on June 27.
The summit took place at a castle just outside Ljubljana. It is the same spot where President Bush held his first meeting in June 2001 with then Russian President Vladimir Putin and famously declared he looked into Mr. Putin's eyes and got a sense of his soul.
As his final summit with EU leaders ended, Mr. Bush sounded a bit nostalgic.
"My first visit as the U.S. President to Europe included my first stop in Slovenia. My last visit as U.S. President to Europe includes a first stop in Slovenia. It is a fitting circle," he said.
From Slovenia, President Bush travels to four key Western European allies - Germany, Italy, France and the United Kingdom.
1 joint | |
adj.联合的,共同的;n.关节,接合处;v.连接,贴合 | |
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2 fully | |
adv.完全地,全部地,彻底地;充分地 | |
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3 isolate | |
vt.使孤立,隔离 | |
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4 imposing | |
adj.使人难忘的,壮丽的,堂皇的,雄伟的 | |
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5 isolation | |
n.隔离,孤立,分解,分离 | |
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6 opposition | |
n.反对,敌对 | |
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7 mandatory | |
adj.命令的;强制的;义务的;n.受托者 | |
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8 restrictions | |
约束( restriction的名词复数 ); 管制; 制约因素; 带限制性的条件(或规则) | |
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9 emissions | |
排放物( emission的名词复数 ); 散发物(尤指气体) | |
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10 remains | |
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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11 presidency | |
n.总统(校长,总经理)的职位(任期) | |
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12 revolving | |
adj.旋转的,轮转式的;循环的v.(使)旋转( revolve的现在分词 );细想 | |
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13 relatively | |
adv.比较...地,相对地 | |
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14 spurt | |
v.喷出;突然进发;突然兴隆 | |
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15 Mediterranean | |
adj.地中海的;地中海沿岸的 | |
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16 demonstration | |
n.表明,示范,论证,示威 | |
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17 intimidation | |
n.恐吓,威胁 | |
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