VOA标准英语2009年-US Special Envoy Meets With Turkish Leaders

U.S. Middle East special envoy¹ George Mitchell has met with the president of Turkey Thursday as part of his quest for peace in the region.
　
U.S. Middle-East special envoy George Mitchell, left, is seen with Turkish President Abdullah Gul, center, and Turkey's Foreign Minister Ali Babacan, right, Ankara, 25 Feb. 2009

Ambassador Mitchell met with Turkey's political leadership and signaled the United State's desire to see Turkey and Israel maintain close relations. The relationship between the two nations has been strained after Turkey accused Israel of using excessive force in an offensive against Hamas that took a heavy toll² on Gaza's civilians³.

After meeting with Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Mitchell stressed the importance of Turkey in his Middle East peace efforts.

"Turkey is crucial ally of the United States, and important force for peace and security in the Middle east," Mitchell said. "As an important democratic nation with strong relations with Israel it has a unique role to play and has significant influence on our effort to promote comprehensive peace."

Turkey has been playing an active role in working to resolve tensions across the Middle East. Earlier last year, Ankara mediated⁴ the Syrian-Israeli peace talks. But those efforts broke down following Israel's attack on Gaza. The increased tension between Israel and Turkey was highlighted last month when Mr. Erdogan walked out of a debate with the Israeli president at the economic summit in Davos, accusing israel of killing⁵ civilians.

Analysts⁶ say the outburst has raised questions over Turkey's impartiality⁷. But Mitchell was keen to look to the future.

"As I discussed with the prime minister and other members of the government it is important for us now to look forward and work together to build a secure and prosperous future for all the people in the region," Mitchell said.

According to experts, the Turkish government is taking on a new role as mediator⁸ with the political leadership of Hamas. The Islamic rooted government has developed friendly ties with Hamas in the last few years. Because of their efforts, Mitchell said he sees Turkey playing an immediate⁹ role in his peace efforts to help secure a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.

"We welcome Turkey's upcoming donor¹⁰ conference in Sharm el-Sheik, and we look forward to its leadership as we actively¹¹ pursue that peace beginning with a durable¹² cease-fire and with a strong efforts to meet the humanitarian¹³ needs in Gaza," Mitchell said.

Analysts say such positive words will be welcomed by the Turkish prime minister who has faced increasing criticism over his ties with of Hamas at the expense of strained relations with Israel.

1 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

2 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

3 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

4 mediated   

调停，调解，斡旋( mediate的过去式和过去分词 )； 居间促成； 影响…的发生； 使…可能发生

参考例句：

• He mediated in the quarrel between the two boys. 他调解两个孩子之间的争吵。
• The government mediated between the workers and the employers. 政府在工人与雇主间搞调和。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

7 impartiality   

n. 公平, 无私, 不偏

参考例句：

• He shows impartiality and detachment. 他表现得不偏不倚，超然事外。
• Impartiality is essential to a judge. 公平是当法官所必需的。

8 mediator   

n.调解人，中介人

参考例句：

• He always takes the role of a mediator in any dispute.他总是在争论中充当调停人的角色。
• He will appear in the role of mediator.他将出演调停者。

9 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

10 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

11 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

12 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

13 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。