VOA标准英语2009-US says Pakistani Nukes are Secure

The top U.S. military officer says he is comfortable that Pakistan's nuclear weapons are secure, but he says he is gravely concerned about Taliban advances in the country and neighboring Afghanistan.
　
Chairman of the US Joint¹ Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen, (file photo)

Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says the United States has worked with the Pakistani military to improve the security of their nuclear arsenal². He says he believes the weapons will be kept out of the hands of terrorists.

"I remain comfortable that the nuclear weapons in Pakistan are secure," said Admiral Mullen. "That the Pakistani leadership and in particular the military is very focused on this. We, the United States, have invested fairly significantly over the last three years to work with them to improve that security and we are satisfied, very satisfied, with that progress."

Earlier, The New York Times reported that some U.S. officials are increasingly worried about the potential vulnerability of Pakistan's nuclear arsenal as the country faces a surge of militant³ activity. Citing unnamed officials, the report says there is U.S. concern about the potential for militants⁴ to snatch a weapon being transported or to insert sympathizers into laboratories or fuel-production facilities.

Mullen acknowledges there is a limit to what the United States knows about Pakistan's nuclear weapons, but he says Islamabad has made dramatic improvements in the arsenal's security in recent years.

"We all recognize, obviously, the worse downside with respect to Pakistan is that those nuclear weapons come under the control of terrorists," he said. "I do not think that is going to happen. I do not see that in anyway imminent⁵ whatsoever⁶ at this particular point in time. But it is a strategic concern that we all share."

Mullen says he is worried about recent military and political gains the Taliban and al-Qaida have made in Pakistan and southern Afghanistan.

"I am gravely concerned about the progress they have made in the south and inside Pakistan," said Mike Mullen. "The consequences of their success directly threaten our national interests in the region and our safety here at home. This is not about 'can do' anymore, this is about 'must do."

The Pakistan Army recently launched an offensive against the Taliban after militants entered the Buner district, 100 kilometers from Islamabad.

Admiral Mullen says it is too soon to tell whether those operations will have an impact over the long term.

"I am not trying to be judgmental in any way, shape or form, though I am following it very closely," he said. "Because I think the most important part of all this is, can these operations be sustained? And for Pakistan, not unlike other counterinsurgency efforts, there is a military piece of this. There is a clear piece of this. They are going through that now. But there also needs to be a hold and a build aspect of it."

Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and his Afghan counterpart, Hamid Karzai, are scheduled to meet in Washington this week with President Barack Obama.

The leaders are expected to discuss joint strategies to end violence and terrorism in their countries.

1 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

2 arsenal   

n.兵工厂，军械库

参考例句：

• Even the workers at the arsenal have got a secret organization.兵工厂工人暗中也有组织。
• We must be the great arsenal of democracy.我们必须成为民主的大军火库。

3 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

4 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

5 imminent   

adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的

参考例句：

• The black clounds show that a storm is imminent.乌云预示暴风雨即将来临。
• The country is in imminent danger.国难当头。

6 whatsoever   

adv.（用于否定句中以加强语气）任何；pron.无论什么

参考例句：

• There's no reason whatsoever to turn down this suggestion.没有任何理由拒绝这个建议。
• All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,do ye even so to them.你想别人对你怎样，你就怎样对人。