VOA标准英语2009年-Petraeus Cites US-Iran 'Common Interests' on Af

The commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East and Central Asia says it may be possible to work with Iran on some issues related to the conflicts in Afghanistan and Iraq. But at the same time General David Petraeus also said some Iranian elements may continue to try to make trouble in both countries, as they have in the past.
　

General David Petraeus (File)

General Petraeus says in spite of its meddling¹ in Iraq and Afghanistan, and strategic disputes over nuclear weapons, human rights and other issues, the United States and Iran have some common interests, particularly regarding the situation in Afghanistan.

"Clearly, there are some common objectives that no one, I think, would disagree on, that Iran is concerned about the narcotics² trade, it doesn't want to see Sunni extremists, certainly ultra, ultra fundamentalist extremists running Afghanistan again any more than other folks do," he said.

General Petraeus also said Iran wants to export its products to Afghanistan. But he warned that some powerful elements in Iran may have a different focus.

"Having said that, I'm sure there is an element that is determining how they can make life miserable³ for the coalition⁴, the alliance, and Afghan forces as well," added Petraeus.

The general also said he believes there are "common interests" between Iran and Iraq. He said trade is also a factor there, as well as access for Iranian religious pilgrims to holy sites in Iraq. He said he believes Iran is in a "period of assessment⁵" about its policy toward Iraq, after its failed attempt to block the new U.S.-Iraq security agreements and the defeat of its Shiite insurgent⁶ network, and with the arrival of a new U.S. administration in 10 days.

General Petraeus said some of the counterinsurgency concepts he implemented⁷ successfully in Iraq during the past two years are being transferred to Afghanistan, such as the focus on securing the population, the need to work on security and civilian⁸ projects at the same time and an effort to better coordinate⁹ the broad effort by the U.S. government and its allies. But he also said the two countries are very different and require specifically targeted approaches.

Still, the general said one idea that worked in Iraq will be launched in Afghanistan on Friday -- a community policing program that has been called Concerned Local Citizens or Sons of Iraq.

"I believe tomorrow there will be a press conference in Kabul about a community protection initiative that is being launched, a coordinated¹⁰ effort between General [David] McKiernan's [allied] forces and the Afghan government, with President [Hamid] Karzai's full support," he said.

General Petraeus said the initial program will be a test to determine whether this approach can work in Afghanistan, but he said if it does it could spread rapidly and have a significant impact, as it did in Iraq.

1 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

2 narcotics   

n.麻醉药( narcotic的名词复数 )；毒品；毒

参考例句：

• The use of narcotics by teenagers is a problem in many countries. 青少年服用麻醉药在许多国家中都是一个问题。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Police shook down the club, looking for narcotics. 警方彻底搜查了这个俱乐部，寻找麻醉品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

4 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。

5 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

6 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。

7 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

8 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

9 coordinate   

adj.同等的，协调的；n.同等者；vt.协作，协调

参考例句：

• You must coordinate what you said with what you did.你必须使你的言行一致。
• Maybe we can coordinate the relation of them.或许我们可以调和他们之间的关系。

10 coordinated   

adj.协调的

参考例句：

• The sound has to be coordinated with the picture. 声音必须和画面协调一致。
• The numerous existing statutes are complicated and poorly coordinated. 目前繁多的法令既十分复杂又缺乏快调。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法