VOA标准英语2009年-Greek PM Makes First Official Visit to Cyp

By Nathan Morley
Nicosia
20 October 2009
Greece and Cyprus have said they support Turkey's bid to become a full member of the European Union and needed its help to end the island's decades-old division. The announcement comes as Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou paid his first official visit to Nicosia.

 
Greek PM George Papandreou, lower right, addresses parliament as a Cypriot President Dimitris Christofias, top left, listens, 20 Oct 2009
 
The division of Cyprus has defied mediation¹ for decades and remains² a key obstacle to Turkey joining the EU, but the UN continues to believe that this problem can be solved and the arrival of the new Greek prime minister here may help speed up the sluggish³ pace of the process.

On arrival, George Papandreou told journalists in Nicosia, that this is a problem that could be solved.

He said this is an issue which we can either solve and therefore [will] unite us, or keep us divided.

Mr. Papandreou, who advocates closer ties with Ankara, says Turkey has every right to be a member of the European Union, but needs to meet entry requirements.

Cyprus was split into a breakaway Turkish Cypriot north and an internationally recognized Greek Cypriot south in 1974 when Turkey invaded in response to a short-lived coup⁴ by supporters of union with Greece. Turkey does not recognize the south.

The island joined the European Union in 2004, but only the Greek Cypriots enjoy membership benefits.

The former Greek Cypriot foreign minister Nikos Rolandis, who is now a political commentator⁵, says Mr. Papandreou's visit was of great importance.

"Mr. Papandreou has been a realist in his political life, as foreign minister and as party leader, so if he is prepared to encounter this problem in a realistic manner, then it will help a lot," said Rolandis.

However, Rolandis said it is now important to increase the pace of these talks, admitting frustration⁶ with the lack of progress .

"To some extent I am, yes. I would have expected more progress by now, because they [the talks] have been going on for more than a year. The whole situation is intractable, its not an easy one," he added. "Still I would have expected to have had some more progress."

Year-long talks between Cyprus President Christofias, a Greek Cypriot, and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat have so far produced little real progress.

Cypriot President Demetris Christofias says Turkey has obligations it must comply with or it will not be able to continue on its accession course without obstruction⁷.

Turkey began EU entry talks in December 2005 but these have been slowed by delays in Turkish reforms and by the Cyprus issue.

1 mediation   

n.调解

参考例句：

• The dispute was settled by mediation of the third country. 这场争端通过第三国的斡旋而得以解决。
• The dispute was settled by mediation. 经调解使争端得以解决。

2 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。

3 sluggish   

adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的

参考例句：

• This humid heat makes you feel rather sluggish.这种湿热的天气使人感到懒洋洋的。
• Circulation is much more sluggish in the feet than in the hands.脚部的循环比手部的循环缓慢得多。

4 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

5 commentator   

n.注释者，解说者；实况广播评论员

参考例句：

• He is a good commentator because he can get across the game.他能简单地解说这场比赛，是个好的解说者。
• The commentator made a big mistake during the live broadcast.在直播节目中评论员犯了个大错误。

6 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

7 obstruction   

n.阻塞，堵塞；障碍物

参考例句：

• She was charged with obstruction of a police officer in the execution of his duty.她被指控妨碍警察执行任务。
• The road was cleared from obstruction.那条路已被清除了障碍。