VOA英语2010年-Former US Ambassador to Yemen Weighs in on W

Among the countries which have been mentioned in the leaked U.S. diplomatic dispatches is Yemen. Some analysts² worry that the leaked information could give al-Qaeda an edge in that country.

Barbara K. Bodine served as U.S. chief of mission to the Republic of Yemen from 1997 through 2001. She also was the first U.S. diplomat¹ put in charge of Iraq, specifically the capital Baghdad, just after the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. Ambassador Bodine is currently Diplomat-in-Residence and Lecturer at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public & International Affairs.

She tells VOA English for the Middle East Reporter Cecily Hilleary that while the published cables did not reveal any great surprises, they are likely to have long-lasting diplomatic repercussions³.

Hilleary: Some analysts say that the Wikileaks scandal is a huge blow to U.S. diplomacy⁴ abroad.? Other say that the media are making more out of the leaks than is necessary, that this is just a lot of "hype." What do you think?

Bodine: It almost reminds me of the oil spill in the Gulf⁵ of Mexico, where in the beginning it looked just like another oil spill. And as it went on, and the amount that was coming out and the inability to stop it - I think I would probably make a parallel to the Gulf oil spill.

Hilleary: Let's get to Yemen specifically. There are a couple of cables - there are actually three here. One of them has Prince Mohamed bin⁶ Nayef, the son of Saudi Arabia's Interior Minister, describing Yemen as a "failed state" and an "extremely dangerous state."

 
Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, Princeton University
Barbara K. Bodine, former US chief of mission to the Republic of YemenBodine: Well, the fact that his comments to us were made public, of course, is damaging. I do think it is fair to say that I don't consider that a major revelation.

I think the fact that the Saudis have probably long considered Yemen a failed state, that's always been a very awkward relationship, and deeply concerned about the spillover of instability in Yemen into Saudi Arabia, particularly from Mohamed bin Nayef, who of course was one of the first high-profile targets of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. That, in and of itself, is not major news. I would be very surprised if actually a cable reported a view different than that.

Hilleary: The cables also confirm that it was the United States military that carried out missile strikes against local al Qaeda in southern Yemen last year - strikes that killed dozens of civilians⁷. And they also reveal that Yemen's president Ali Abdullah Saleh deceived the Yemeni people about this. He told them and parliament that it was Yemen who struck at Al Qaeda, using American weapons.

Bodine: And confirming that, again, it is dangerous. It is damaging. There's no question about it. Again, however - has been a fairly public understanding. I mean either Human Rights Watch or Amnesty International had confirmed that earlier. The confirmation⁸ of that through private channels, the fact that we may have known about it before it was public - yes, that is a problem.

Hilleary: There are analysts who are saying that all of this plays right into Al Qaeda's hands. What do you think the ultimate fall out will be?

Bodine: Again. I think you do bring up a critical point. How is this going to be used by people like al Qaeda? How is this going to be used to further their cause and to embarrass both the Yemeni government and us? A lot of the information in these cables is not particularly new.

But it is the context in which it is discussed and the way it can be exploited by people, the way it can also put not just President Saleh, but a lot of the other people that we talk to on a regular basis, in a position where we're not going to be able to have these kinds of conversations.

Hilleary: Only a couple of hundred cables have been posted thus far, creating this much embarrassment⁹ and trouble. But apparently¹⁰ the website's acquired more than a quarter of a million cables - which means we probably haven't seen anything yet. As a former ambassador, as a diplomat, are you nervous about seeing your name in print one day?

Bodine: Given the sheer number of cables that have been leaked, I think the odds¹¹ are that at least one of my cables will probably be among the stack. Yes. I find that extremely difficult.

1 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

2 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。

3 repercussions   

n.后果，反响( repercussion的名词复数 )；余波

参考例句：

• The collapse of the company will have repercussions for the whole industry. 这家公司的垮台将会给整个行业造成间接的负面影响。
• Human acts have repercussions far beyond the frontiers of the human world. 人类行为所产生的影响远远超出人类世界的范围。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

5 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

6 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

7 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。

8 confirmation   

n.证实，确认，批准

参考例句：

• We are waiting for confirmation of the news.我们正在等待证实那个消息。
• We need confirmation in writing before we can send your order out.给你们发送订购的货物之前，我们需要书面确认。

9 embarrassment   

n.尴尬；使人为难的人(事物)；障碍；窘迫

参考例句：

• She could have died away with embarrassment.她窘迫得要死。
• Coughing at a concert can be a real embarrassment.在音乐会上咳嗽真会使人难堪。

10 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

11 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？