VOA标准英语2009年-General McChrystal: Success in Afghanistan

By Jennifer Glasse
London
01 October 2009

General Stanley McChrystal, NATO's top commander in Afghanistan says the situation there is serious and success is not assured.  Speaking at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, the general said it is the Afghan people who will decide who is winning or losing. 

 
General Stanley McChrystal, Commander, US Forces Afghanistan delivers a speech in London, 01 Oct 2009
General Stanley McChrystal says there is no simple solution in Afghanistan.

"It is complex difficult terrain¹, both the land and the people, it is a tribal² society with a culture vastly different from what most of us are familiar with and it varies around the country, so you cannot assume what is true in one province is true in another," he said.

General McChrystal says who is winning right now depends on who you ask. He says it is not a game, but more like a political debate in which both sides claim victory.

"We are not the scorekeepers, not NATO, ISAF, not our governments, not even our press. The perception on all those entities³ will matter, they will affect the situation, but in the end this is going to be decided⁴ in the minds and the perceptions of the Afghan people," he added.

McChrystal says the force must focus on winning the confidence of the people. He says there have been improvements, in areas such as education and building infrastructure⁵, but in other areas the situation is deteriorating⁶.

"A tremendous number of villagers live in fear, and we have officials who either can not or do not serve their people effectively, and violence is up, and it is not up only because there are more coalition⁷ forces, it is up because the insurgency⁸ has grown," continued McChrystal.

McChrystal says his forces will need to do things dramatically differently to stop the insurgency.

"We must gain the initiative by reversing the perceived momentum⁹ of the insurgents¹⁰. We must seek rapid growth of Afghan national security forces, and that is the army and the police, and we must improve their effectiveness and our own through closer partnering, and this means we must plan together, live together, operate together and take advantage of each other's strengths as we move forward," he said.

After eight years, McChrystal says the Afghan people are growing weary, and the forces need to show results soon.

"We need to reverse the current trends, and time does matter," said McChrystal. "Waiting does not prolong a favorable outcome. This effort will not remain winnable indefinitely, public support will not last indefinitely, but the cruel irony¹¹ is to succeed, we need patience, discipline, resolve and time."

McChrystal has reportedly requested thousands more troops to help him make Afghanistan a stable, secure country, and eventually able to look after itself, his definition for success there. 

U.S. President Barack Obama, along with other NATO leaders, are apparently¹² considering that request. Resolve in Europe has been wavering with Italy's prime minister recently saying he wants to get his troops out as soon as possible. McChrystal says that is what everyone wants, but not before Afghanistan is stable.

1 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

2 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

3 entities   

实体对像； 实体，独立存在体，实际存在物( entity的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our newspaper and our printing business form separate corporate entities. 我们的报纸和印刷业形成相对独立的企业实体。
• The North American continent is made up of three great structural entities. 北美大陆是由三个构造单元组成的。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

6 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

7 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。

8 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

9 momentum   

n.动力，冲力，势头；动量

参考例句：

• We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way.我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
• The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law.动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。

10 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

11 irony   

n.反语，冷嘲；具有讽刺意味的事，嘲弄

参考例句：

• She said to him with slight irony.她略带嘲讽地对他说。
• In her voice we could sense a certain tinge of irony.从她的声音里我们可以感到某种讥讽的意味。

12 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。