VOA标准英语2009年-Pentagon Denies Report of 'Unannounced' Tr

By Al Pessin
Pentagon
13 October 2009

The Pentagon says a Washington Post story claiming it is making an "unannounced" deployment¹ of 13,000 additional troops to Afghanistan is inaccurate².

 
US Soldiers in Afghanistan
A Pentagon spokesman, Colonel Dave Lapan, says the Post story itself notes that the 13,000 support troops are within the overall maximum authorized³ by President Barack Obama earlier this year.

"The story confirms that 68,000 is still the number. So nothing is missing. Nothing is hidden. The 13,000 doesn't somehow increase from 68 [thousand] to above that. So we've consistently said by the end of the year, on the current glide⁴ path, 68,000. And as the story acknowledges, that's where we'll be," said Lapan.

He explains, as Pentagon officials have in the past, that the deployment of major combat or training units always requires the deployment of additional support troops. The support troops perform a variety of functions such as mine clearance⁵, equipment servicing, construction, air support, medical services and many others. 

When President Obama took office in January, there were about 34,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Within weeks, he approved a Pentagon request for an additional 21,000 combat and training troops, plus support units. Shortly afterward⁶, officials made public that the support troops would number up to 13,000, bringing the overall total to 68,000 by the end of the year -- a doubling of the deployment from when he took office. The 68,000 figure has been widely reported ever since.

Again, Colonel Lapan.

"The sense that there are somehow 13 [thousand] that weren't authorized or that are somehow new, well then that would make the 68 [thousand] number go up by 13,000, wouldn't it? But it's not," Lapan said.

The Pentagon says there are now about 65,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan, with more on the way in the coming months. There are also about 39,000 troops from other NATO and coalition⁷ countries.

President Obama and his national security team are considering a request from his new commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, for a substantial number of additional troops. The official number is secret, but news reports say the general wants about 40,000, possibly more.

The request is controversial, not least because with the U.S. troop level in Iraq expected to remain around its current 120,000 for at least several more months, the strain on the U.S. Army is considerable. 

1 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

2 inaccurate   

adj.错误的，不正确的，不准确的

参考例句：

• The book is both inaccurate and exaggerated.这本书不但不准确，而且夸大其词。
• She never knows the right time because her watch is inaccurate.她从来不知道准确的时间因为她的表不准。

3 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

4 glide   

n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝

参考例句：

• We stood in silence watching the snake glide effortlessly.我们噤若寒蝉地站着，眼看那条蛇逍遥自在地游来游去。
• So graceful was the ballerina that she just seemed to glide.那芭蕾舞女演员翩跹起舞，宛如滑翔。

5 clearance   

n.净空；许可(证)；清算；清除，清理

参考例句：

• There was a clearance of only ten centimetres between the two walls.两堵墙之间只有十厘米的空隙。
• The ship sailed as soon as it got clearance. 那艘船一办好离港手续立刻启航了。

6 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。

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。