VOA标准英语2009年-Obama, Top Advisers Discuss Afghanistan St

By Kent Klein
Washington
01 October 2009

 
President Barack Obama (file photo)
U.S. President Barack Obama has met with his top military commanders, diplomats¹, intelligence officials and other advisers², to review Washington's war strategy in Afghanistan. The administration is also considering the top commander's request for more troops.

President Obama and 18 members of his national security team spent about three hours in the White House Situation Room Wednesday, assessing their Afghanistan policy. Details of the discussion were not released.

The president's press secretary, Robert Gibbs, says this is the second of five such meetings to be held over several weeks, to determine the best course in Afghanistan. "Let's get a firm strategy, let's discuss that, let's poke³ and prod⁴ it and ensure that we have done it the right way, then implement⁵ tactics to achieve that strategy, and part of those tactics are deciding resources," he said.

One choice Mr. Obama faces is whether to send more troops to Afghanistan to prevent the Taliban from regaining⁶ control, or to use special forces and unmanned spy planes to target al-Qaida in Pakistan.

The U.S. Commander in Afghanistan, Army General Stanley McChrystal, has said the U.S. will likely lose the war if the administration does not send more troops.

Pentagon Press Secretary Geoff Morrell says key military leaders all support the type of counterinsurgency strategy that has resulted in significant progress in Iraq in recent years. That approach requires a large number of troops to provide security and help the local government assert its authority and deliver services.

Morrell says Defense⁷ Secretary Robert Gates supports that approach. But the spokesman says much has happened since the president announced his strategy in March, and Gates wants a closer look. "He wants to have a thorough discussion with the president and the rest of the national security team about whether that does remain the best way to pursue our enemies in Afghanistan, and ultimately bring a level of peace and security there, so that it no longer poses a threat to us," he said.

Mr. Obama ordered an additional 21,000 forces into Afghanistan in March, boosting the U.S. total to 68,000. Troops from U.S. allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization bring the total to about 100,000.

Reports say General McChrystal wants between 30,000 and 40,000 additional troops. Morrell says Secretary Gates still has the commander's specific troop request "locked in his desk drawer," and it will stay there until a later stage of the strategy review.

Before Wednesday's meeting, presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs said another decision to be made is how to deal with insurgents⁸ in Pakistan. "Pakistan will play a big role in the discussions, both today and moving forward. Extremist elements that were in Afghanistan have now been pushed into the mountains and into Pakistan," he said.

Overall, Gibbs says the president's main goals in Afghanistan have not changed. "I think the president believes strongly that the goals that he outlined are still very key to our national security, that we have to disrupt, dismantle⁹ and destroy al-Qaida and its extremist allies," he said.

Support for the eight-year-old war is declining among Americans. Slightly more than half say the conflict is not worth the fight. And some Democrats¹⁰ in Congress have questioned whether escalating¹¹ the war is wise.

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 advisers   

顾问，劝告者( adviser的名词复数 )； （指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• a member of the President's favoured circle of advisers 总统宠爱的顾问班子中的一员
• She withdrew to confer with her advisers before announcing a decision. 她先去请教顾问然后再宣布决定。

3 poke   

n.刺，戳，袋；vt.拨开，刺，戳；vi.戳，刺，捅，搜索，伸出，行动散慢

参考例句：

• We never thought she would poke her nose into this.想不到她会插上一手。
• Don't poke fun at me.别拿我凑趣儿。

4 prod   

vt.戳，刺；刺激，激励

参考例句：

• The crisis will prod them to act.那个危机将刺激他们行动。
• I shall have to prod him to pay me what he owes.我将不得不催促他把欠我的钱还给我。

5 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

6 regaining   

复得( regain的现在分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• She was regaining consciousness now, but the fear was coming with her. 现在她正在恢发她的知觉，但是恐怖也就伴随着来了。
• She said briefly, regaining her will with a click. 她干脆地答道，又马上重新振作起精神来。

7 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。

8 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

9 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

10 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 escalating   

v.（使）逐步升级( escalate的现在分词 )；（使）逐步扩大；（使）更高；（使）更大

参考例句：

• The cost of living is escalating. 生活费用在迅速上涨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cost of living is escalating in the country. 这个国家的生活费用在上涨。 来自辞典例句