VOA标准英语2009年-Clinton: US Committed to Success in Afghan

By Jennifer Glasse
London
12 October 2009

 
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks to reporters at Farmleigh House, Dublin, 11 Oct 2009
U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton says Washington is committed to the goals set out for Afghanistan, but says much more is expected of the Afghan government. Clinton spoke¹ while visiting Britain.

The commander of the British Army's 19th Light Brigade, Brigadier Tim Radford, just returned from Afghanistan. He says it was a long tour. He lost 66 men, many from roadside bombs.

"It has been a tour where we have seen things changed," he said. "We have faced an enemy who do not want to fight us force-on-force, rather they wanted to lay improvised² explosive devices to halt us in our path and this summer total of 1,800 Improvised explosive devices laid in our path, so we have had to adapt quickly."

The U.S. administration is also trying to adapt to the changing situation in Afghanistan. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, on a European tour told British radio America's goal is clear.

"We are not changing our strategy, our strategy remains³ to achieve the goal of disrupting, dismantling⁴ and defeating al Qaida and its extremist allies, and denying them safe haven⁵ and the capacity to strike us here in London, or New York or anywhere else," said Clinton.

She says President Barack Obama is consulting with military commanders and other advisors⁶ to work out the best way forward in Afghanistan.

"The in-depth discussions we are having, where we are testing our assumptions, where we are looking at how better to integrate our civilian⁷ and military components⁸ and our very clear understanding that Pakistan and the region must be addressed as well, is leading to some welcome clarity and the kind of commitment that is needed," she added.

The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, has reportedly asked for up to 40,000 more troops. President Barack Obama has not indicated whether he will grant the request. 

Clinton says whatever decision the president makes, the United States remains steadfast⁹ in Afghanistan.

"One should never doubt our commitment or our leadership, we intend to pursue the goal. We will not rest until we do defeat al-Qaida. But we want to be smart about how we are proceeding," she said. "The lives that our young men and women both American and British have put at risk and lost are very much on our minds, and we intend to get this as right as its humanly possible."

Part of rethinking the situation includes redefining the enemy.

"We are doing much more careful analysis of who actually is allied¹⁰ to al-Qaida. Not everyone who calls himself a Taliban is necessarily a threat to the U.K. or the United States," said Clinton. "There well may be a number of people who are considered Taliban because they get paid to fight, because they see no alternative."

General McChrystal has said winning the population's trust is central to success in Afghanistan.

The Secretary of State emphasized that many factors are being considered. One of them is the political situation. Afghanistan held elections in August but the results are contested amidst allegations of fraud. Clinton said if incumbent¹¹ Hamid Karzai emerges as the winner, he will have to change.

"If this election results in his being re-elected, there must be a new relationship between him and the people of Afghanistan and between his government and governments like yours and mine, which are supporting the efforts in Afghanistan to stabilize¹² and secure the country," she said.

The British Prime minister is expected to make an announcement about Afghanistan on Wednesday, but all eyes are on the United States and what President Obama will decide is the best way to achieve America's goals in Afghanistan.

1 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

2 improvised   

a.即席而作的,即兴的

参考例句：

• He improvised a song about the football team's victory. 他即席创作了一首足球队胜利之歌。
• We improvised a tent out of two blankets and some long poles. 我们用两条毛毯和几根长竿搭成一个临时帐蓬。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 dismantling   

（枪支）分解

参考例句：

• The new government set about dismantling their predecessors' legislation. 新政府正着手废除其前任所制定的法律。
• The dismantling of a nuclear reprocessing plant caused a leak of radioactivity yesterday. 昨天拆除核后处理工厂引起了放射物泄漏。

5 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

6 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor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：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网

7 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。

8 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

9 steadfast   

adj.固定的，不变的，不动摇的；忠实的；坚贞不移的

参考例句：

• Her steadfast belief never left her for one moment.她坚定的信仰从未动摇过。
• He succeeded in his studies by dint of steadfast application.由于坚持不懈的努力他获得了学业上的成功。

10 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

11 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

12 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。