VOA标准英语2009年-Obama to Discuss Iraq, Afghanistan Wednesday

President Obama meets with his national security team, including top military officers, Wednesday to begin to chart a new U.S. policy toward Iraq and Afghanistan.
　
US soldiers celebrate the inauguration¹ of Barack Obama, as the 44th president of the United States at the US camp Phoenix² base in Kabul, Afghanistan, 20 Jan 2009

As a presidential candidate, several times Mr. Obama said something like this comment he made in July about the war in Iraq.

"Let me be as clear as I can be. I intend to end this war. My first day in office I will bring the joint³ chiefs of staff in and I will give them a new mission, and that is to end this war, responsibly and deliberately⁴, but decisively," said Mr. Obama.

Now that the day is here, officials say he will not exactly meet with the Joint Chiefs of Staff - the heads of the four U.S. military branches - but he will meet with their chairman, Admiral Mike Mullen, and with Defense⁵ Secretary Robert Gates and key combat commanders, along with other members of the new national security team. The new president gave a hint of his plans during his Inaugural⁶ Address on Tuesday.

"We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan," said Mr. Obama.

During the campaign, he was more specific about his Iraq plans, calling for the withdrawal⁷ of U.S. combat troops within 16 months. That plan worried many military commanders during the campaign, and they still call the situation in Iraq "fragile."

But with the progress made during the last year and a half in Iraq, they say something like 16 months might be possible, without risking a reversal of the security gains. And President Obama has said he will listen to the military commanders before making any final decisions.

"In putting this plan together, I will always listen to the advice of commanders on the ground, but that ultimately I am the person who is making the strategic decisions," he said.

Mr. Obama has also said he plans to leave behind enough troops in Iraq to hunt terrorists and train the country's security forces. But there is now a U.S.-Iraq agreement to have all U.S. troops out, combat troops and support units, in three years.

As he plans to move as quickly as possible with an Iraq withdrawal, President Obama also plans to follow through with former President Bush's plan to nearly double the U.S. troop commitment in Afghanistan. And in his inaugural speech, the new president indicated he will also continue what Bush called the Global War on Terrorism.

"We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering⁸ innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast⁹ us, and we will defeat you," said Mr. Obama.

But the Inaugural Address is more of a blueprint¹⁰ than a detailed¹¹ design. Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell, who like his boss Secretary Gates is staying on in the new administration, said last week the details of President Obama's approach are still to be worked out.

"What ultimately is the strategy that the president-elect and his team wish to pursue is something that is still under discussion and likely will be for some time once they take office," he said.

That process begins in earnest at the promised first-day meeting on Wednesday.

1 inauguration   

n.开幕、就职典礼

参考例句：

• The inauguration of a President of the United States takes place on January 20.美国总统的就职典礼于一月二十日举行。
• Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration.3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。

2 phoenix   

n.凤凰，长生(不死)鸟；引申为重生

参考例句：

• The airline rose like a phoenix from the ashes.这家航空公司又起死回生了。
• The phoenix worship of China is fetish worship not totem adoration.中国凤崇拜是灵物崇拜而非图腾崇拜。

3 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。

4 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

5 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

6 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

7 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。

8 slaughtering   

v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The Revolutionary Tribunal went to work, and a steady slaughtering began. 革命法庭投入工作，持续不断的大屠杀开始了。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• \"Isn't it terrific slaughtering pigs? “宰猪的！ 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

9 outlast   

v.较…耐久

参考例句：

• The great use of life is to spend it doing something that will outlast it.人生的充分利用就是为争取比人生更长久的东西而度过一生。
• These naturally dried flowers will outlast a bouquet of fresh blooms.这些自然风干的花会比一束鲜花更加持久。

10 blueprint   

n.蓝图，设计图，计划；vt.制成蓝图，计划

参考例句：

• All the machine parts on a blueprint must answer each other.设计图上所有的机器部件都应互相配合。
• The documents contain a blueprint for a nuclear device.文件内附有一张核装置的设计蓝图。

11 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。