VOA标准英语2012--Can Diplomacy Solve Iranian Nuclear Crisis?

Can Diplomacy¹ Solve Iranian Nuclear Crisis?

Top officials say there is a diplomatic path to avoid a military conflict. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi says there are two alternatives - engagement or confrontation².
“The Islamic Republic of Iran, confident of the peaceful nature of its nuclear program, has always insisted on the first alternative,” Salehi said.
“There is time and space for diplomacy. But in order for that to happen Iran has to meet its international obligations,” said US Secretary of Defense³ Leon Panetta.
Analysts⁴ say sanctions are beginning to cripple Iran’s economy.
And recently the nation’s senior nuclear negotiator said Tehran is ready to resume talks.
“This response from the Iranian government is one we have been waiting for, and if we do proceed, it will have to be a sustained effort that can produce results,” Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.
Talks last year in Turkey between Western nations and Iran produced no progress.
Some analysts doubt any renewed negotiations⁵ are likely to succeed. “They are simply exposed to too much scrutiny⁶, too much press attention, too much media attention, too much political attention for either side to move very much,” said James Dobbins of the Rand Corporation.
Despite Western sanctions Iran is continuing to pursue its nuclear program, with leaders saying it will not yield to outside pressure. But the country’s supreme⁷ leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, says Iran has no interest in developing an atomic bomb.
“We want to say that we are not in pursuit of nuclear weapons and we do not see power in (the possession of) nuclear weapons and we can break the dependence⁸ on nuclear weapons and God willing the nation will do this,” Khamenei said.
Israel and the United States say if diplomacy and sanctions do not work, military action remains⁹ an option. That could backfire, says Massachusetts Institute of Technology security expert Jim Walsh.
“Following an attack, Iran will definitely decide to pursue a nuclear weapons capability,” Walsh said.
Western nations have been following a two-track approach to Iran’s nuclear program, intensifying¹⁰ sanctions while leaving the door open for diplomatic efforts.

1 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。

2 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

3 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。

4 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。

5 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

6 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

7 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

8 dependence   

n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属

参考例句：

• Doctors keep trying to break her dependence of the drug.医生们尽力使她戒除毒瘾。
• He was freed from financial dependence on his parents.他在经济上摆脱了对父母的依赖。

9 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

10 intensifying   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的现在分词 )；增辉

参考例句：

• The allies are intensifying their air campaign. 联军部队正加大他们的空战强度。 来自辞典例句
• The rest of the European powers were in a state of intensifying congestion. 其余的欧洲强国则处于越来越拥挤的状态。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史