VOA标准英语2010年-Petraeus Issues First Guidance to Alli

General David Petraeus

The U.S. and international commander in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, who took command a month ago, has issued his first guidance document for the nearly 150,000 troops under his command. He is emphasizing the need to provide security and good governance for the Afghan people.

 

In a three-and-a-half-page document, General Petraeus' first two guidance points order his forces to "secure and serve the population" and "live among the people."  His 24 points also include fighting corruption¹ and abuse of power, which he says fuel the insurgency².  He also tells the troops to "pursue the enemy relentlessly," to "fight hard" and also "with discipline," and to consult local people and their leaders as they make plans.

The document makes many of the same points as the one issued a year ago by Petraeus' predecessor³, General Stanley McChrystal, who was forced to resign in June after he and members of his staff were quoted criticizing senior Obama Administration officials.

Petraeus also is expected to issue a new tactical directive - probably this week - designed to clarify some of McChrystal's orders, particularly one that some troops have complained limits their ability to call in air strikes to protect themselves.  Senior officials say air strikes should be kept to a minimum to avoid civilian⁴ casualties, but Petraeus has already said troops must be allowed to defend themselves.

Speaking to a veterans' group Monday, President Barack Obama indicated the tactical directive will be well timed, as most of the additional forces he ordered to Afghanistan have arrived and operations are steadily⁵ increasing.

"Nearly all the additional forces that I ordered to Afghanistan are now in place," said the president.  "Along with our Afghan and international partners, we are going on the offensive against the Taliban, targeting their leaders, challenging them in regions where they had free rein⁶, and training Afghan national security forces."

The president said the United States and its coalition⁷ and Afghan partners "will continue to face huge challenges in Afghanistan," but he said the new strategy he announced in December is generating progress toward what he called "achievable" goals. 

The key goals are to defeat al-Qaida and it supporters, including the Taliban, and to enable the Afghan government and security forces to keep the terrorists out in the future.  The president says he will begin to withdraw U.S. troops next July, but officials say the United States will maintain a substantial military and civilian commitment to Afghanistan for years after that.

The guidance document General Petraeus issued Sunday tells the troops they need to work closely with the Afghan forces, and with U.S. and international civilian agencies.  He also tells the troops it is important to gain the trust of the Afghan people by interacting with them and by communicating allied⁸ intentions, and the results of operations, quickly and accurately⁹. 

He also endorses¹⁰ the Afghan government's somewhat controversial plan to reintegrate some low-level Taliban fighters into society, saying the foreign troops should work with local officials to identify which insurgents¹¹ are "reconcilable," and which need to be pursued militarily.

According to the Pentagon, there are now 98,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.  That is the target number for the enhanced force ordered by President Obama.  Officials say the number, however, reflects some overlap¹² between newly arrived units and some that are preparing to rotate out of the country, and there still several thousand of the additional forces yet to deploy¹³.  The Pentagon says there also are 49,000 troops from NATO and other international partner countries.
 

1 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

2 insurgency   

n.起义；暴动；叛变

参考例句：

• And as in China, unrest and even insurgency are widespread. 而在中国，动乱甚至暴乱都普遍存在。 来自互联网
• Dr Zyphur is part an insurgency against this idea. 塞弗博士是这一观点逆流的一部分。 来自互联网

3 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 steadily   

adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地

参考例句：

• The scope of man's use of natural resources will steadily grow.人类利用自然资源的广度将日益扩大。
• Our educational reform was steadily led onto the correct path.我们的教学改革慢慢上轨道了。

6 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

7 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

8 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

9 accurately   

adv.准确地，精确地

参考例句：

• It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
• Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。

10 endorses   

v.赞同( endorse的第三人称单数 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• There isn't one country in the Middle East that now endorses the Eisenhower Doctrine. 但至今没有一个中东国家认可它。 来自辞典例句
• Whether any of this truly endorses Dr Patel's hypothesis is moot. 这些视频能否真正证明帕特的假设成立还是个未知数。 来自互联网

11 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

12 overlap   

v.重叠，与…交叠；n.重叠

参考例句：

• The overlap between the jacket and the trousers is not good.夹克和裤子重叠的部分不好看。
• Tiles overlap each other.屋瓦相互叠盖。

13 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。