VOA标准英语2010年-Pentagon Partners with FBI to Investig

Defense¹ Secretary Robert Gates (l) accompanied by Joint² Chiefs Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen hold a press briefing at the Pentagon, 29 Jul 2010

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says he has asked the Federal Bureau of Investigation³, or FBI, to assist in the probe into the leak and publication of classified military documents.  Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen spoke⁴ about the issue at a press conference at the Pentagon on Thursday, several days after the Internet website WikiLeaks posted tens of thousands of documents about the war in Afghanistan. 

Defense Secretary Gates told reporters that problems highlighted in the leaked documents about the war in Afghanistan have been publicly known for some time. 

But he did not downplay the possible damage caused by the release of what he called "a mountain of raw data and individual impressions" that is "devoid⁵ of context or analysis."   

"The battlefield consequences of the release of these documents are potentially severe and dangerous for our troops, our allies and Afghan partners, and may well damage our relationships and reputation in that key part of the world," said Robert Gates.

Gates said intelligence sources and methods as well as military tactics will become known as a result of the leak. 

Gates underscored that he believes the United States has a moral obligation to help Afghans whose security might have been jeopardized⁶ by the breach⁷.

"That is one of the worst aspects of this, as far as I'm concerned," he said. "Will people trust us?  Will people whose lives are on the line trust us to keep their identities secret?  Will other governments trust us to keep their documents and their intelligence secret?"

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen said he is appalled⁸ and outraged⁹ that the documents were leaked and published on the WikiLeaks website.  He lashed¹⁰ out at WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange and anyone who provided that website with the classified information.

"Mr. Assange can say whatever he likes about the greater good he thinks he and his source are doing," said Admiral Mullen. "But the truth is they might already have on their hands the blood of some young soldier or that of an Afghan family."

In an interview with VOA earlier this year, months before this week's disclosure of military documents, Assange said his website takes great pains to protect its sources.

Gates said the Pentagon has not been in contact with Assange.  The defense secretary declined to directly answer a reporter's question about whether WikiLeaks or the news media would be investigated for publishing the classified information.

"My basic position, though, is the investigation should go wherever it needs to go," said Gates. "And one of the reasons that I asked the director of the FBI to partner with us in this is to ensure that it can go wherever it needs to go."

Gates said the Pentagon is also taking action on the ground in war zones to prevent another such breach.  He said this will include tightening¹¹ procedures for accessing and transporting classified information.  But, he said, striking a balance between security concerns and concerns for the security of U.S. forces will be difficult.  

"As a general proposition, we endeavor to push access to sensitive battlefield information down to where it is most useful - on the front lines - where as a practical matter, there are fewer restrictions¹² and controls than at rear headquarters," he said.

In a press conference in London on Monday, Assange said WikiLeaks has held back some 15,000 files from the approximate 96,000 documents it received in the leak.  He said those documents are being reviewed, and that some will be redacted and released. 

In April, WikiLeaks posted classified video of a 2007 helicopter strike in Iraq that killed two Iraqis who were on assignment for the Reuters news agency.  Two months later, the U.S. military announced it had detained that Army Specialist Bradley Manning for allegedly releasing classified information in connection with the incident. 

Manning, who had been deployed¹³ in Baghdad, had reportedly told a former hacker¹⁴ about providing classified combat video as well as some 260,000 classified diplomatic cables to WikiLeaks.  

 
 

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 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。

3 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

6 jeopardized   

危及，损害( jeopardize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The soldier jeopardized his life to save his comrade. 这个士兵冒生命的危险救他的同志。
• The occasional failed project or neglected opportunity does not jeopardized overall progress. 偶然失败的项目或失误的机会并没有影响总的进展。

7 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

8 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

10 lashed   

adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The rain lashed at the windows. 雨点猛烈地打在窗户上。
• The cleverly designed speech lashed the audience into a frenzy. 这篇精心设计的演说煽动听众使他们发狂。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

12 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

13 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

14 hacker   

n.能盗用或偷改电脑中信息的人，电脑黑客

参考例句：

• The computer hacker wrote that he was from Russia.这个计算机黑客自称他来自俄罗斯。
• This site was attacked by a hacker last week.上周这个网站被黑客攻击了。