英国新闻听力 股神巴菲特收购美国最大铁路运营商

The former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has appeared at the Yugoslav war-crimes tribunal in the Hague for the first time since the start of his trial. Mr Karadzic listened calmly as the prosecution¹ urged the court either to force him to attend or to proceed without him. Mr Karadzic, who denies charges including genocide over his role in the Bosnian War, repeated his demand for more time to prepare his case. Peter Bowes was at the court.

The former Bosnian Serb leader was defiant² and unyielding. He said he didn’t want to boycott³ the trial but he didn’t want to take part in something which he said had been bad from the start. He just needed more time. He told the court he’d only had five months to prepare, and was snowed under by two million pages of evidence in all. The next trial hearing planned for tomorrow has been cancelled, while the judges decide how to proceed after today’s submissions⁴.

The Czech President Vaclav Klaus has signed the Lisbon Treaty reforming the European Union, removing the last obstacle to its coming into force. A Czech court earlier ruled the treaty did not conflict with Czech law. Rob Cameron reports.

Vaclav Klaus has been one of the most vocal⁵ and most vociferous⁶ opponents of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty, but on Tuesday he gave up the fight. Mr Klaus said he expected the ruling of the constitutional court, even though he believed the court was biased⁷ and confrontational⁸. He said he was convinced the Czech Republic had now ceased to be a sovereign state. Last to gasps⁹ of surprise from reporters, he said he’d signed the Lisbon treaty at three o’clock Prague time. His long battle is over and the EU’s beleaguered¹⁰ treaty of reform finally becomes law.

The Vatican and the Italian government have both reacted angrily to a ruling by the European Court of Human Rights that crucifixes shouldn’t be displayed in Italian classrooms. The court judgment¹¹ came after a complaint from a parent about her children’s school. Here is Duncan Kennedy in Rome.

The judges decided¹² that the display of crucifixes in state schools restricted the right of parents to educate their children according to their own principles. They also said that crosses restricted the right of children to believe or not to believe. The decision has caused widespread anger among conservative politicians in Italy and the Catholic Church. A Vatican spokesman said the ruling was received with shock and sadness. He added that it was wrong and myopic¹³ to try to exclude the crucifix from the world of education.

The German Chancellor¹⁴ Angela Merkel has called on the United States to take the lead alongside Europe in fighting climate change. She told the US Congress that China and India would be more likely to accept binding¹⁵ obligations at the Copenhagen Summit next month if Europe and the US set an example. Mrs Merkel is the first German leader to address Congress for more than 50 years.

The United States has accused North Korea of going back on previous commitments over its assertion, that it’s produced a further batch¹⁶ of material for a nuclear bomb. The American said it was also a violation¹⁷ of United Nations resolutions. North Korea said it had reprocessed 8, 000 spent nuclear fuel rods and added the material to its weapons stockpile.

Police in Indonesia say they’ve released two leading anti-corruption officials whose detention¹⁸ had caused a public outcry. The officials say charges of bribery¹⁹ brought against them are fabricated by the police in an attempt to undermine Indonesia’s powerful Anti-Corruption Commission.

The powerful American investor²⁰ Warren Buffett has made his biggest ever deal by acquiring one of the United States largest rail companies. He called it a bet on the future of the US economy. Mark Gregory reports.

Warren Buffett’s investment company Berkshire Hathaway is buying a 77% stake in Burlington Northern which runs railways in 28 US states. Mr Buffett’s firm already owns the rest of the shares. The Texas-based rail operator makes most of its money from carrying freight. The freight side of the US rail network has recently undergone a revival²¹ after decades of seemingly unstoppable decline. Warren Buffett, currently ranked as the world’s second richest man, is famous for his business acumen²². Where he treads, other investors²³ may well follow.

The British government is to invest nearly 50 billion dollars of extra capital in two of the country's biggest banks as part of a major shakeup of the banking²⁴ industry. The money is going to Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group, which have both agreed to sell off hundreds of high street branches to allow more competition. The two banks were bailed²⁵ out with billions of dollars in state aid during the financial crisis last year.

自审判开始以来，前波黑塞族领袖拉多万·卡拉季奇(Radovan Karadzic)首次出现在海牙南斯拉夫战争罪刑事法庭。当检控部门敦促法庭或者强迫卡拉季奇出席，或者继续进行缺席审判时，他异常平静。卡拉季奇否认包括波斯尼亚战争中的种族大屠杀在内的所有指控。他反复强调，要求更多的时间来准备自己的案子。Peter Bowes在法庭现场报道。

这位前波黑塞族领袖非常挑衅，非常顽固。他说，他不想抵制审判，但是他也不想参加从一开始就是错误的事情。他只是需要更多时间。他告诉法庭，他只有五个月的时间进行准备，收到雪花一般的长达200万页的证据。原计划定于明天的下一场审判被取消，法官需要裁决，今天的审判过后应该怎样继续进行。

捷克总统克劳斯终于在对欧盟进行改革的里斯本条约上签字，消除了该条约进行实施的最后一道障碍。此前，捷克法庭裁决，里斯本条约不与捷克法律相冲突。Rob Cameron报道。

克劳斯曾是欧盟里斯本条约最顽强，最固执的反对者。但是周二，他终于放弃反抗。他表示尊重宪法法庭作出的裁决，尽管他认为法庭有所偏颇并且是对抗性的。他这使记者非常惊讶。Vaclav Klaus说，他相信，捷克共和国现在已经不再是主权国家。他说，他已经在Prague时间三点钟在里斯本条约上签字。他的长期战争终于结束，欧盟的改革条约终将成为法律。

欧洲人权法庭裁决意大利教室不得摆放十字架，梵蒂冈和意大利政府均表示强烈抗议。一名家长投诉孩子的学校之后法院作出该判决。Duncan Kennedy在罗马报道。

法官认为，在州立学校展示十字架限制了家长按照自己的原则教育孩子的权利。他们还说，十字架限制了孩子们选择相信或者不相信的权利。

该决定引起了意大利保守派政治人物和天主教堂的强烈愤慨。梵蒂冈一名发言人表示，他们收到该裁决之后非常震惊，非常悲痛。他补充说，将十字架从教育世界中排除是错误的，缺乏长远眼光的。

德国总理默克尔呼吁美国与欧洲一起在应对气候变化方面起到带头作用。她告诉美国国会，如果欧洲和美国能够树立榜样，在下月举行的哥本哈根峰会上，中国和印度更有可能接受有法律约束力的责任。默克尔是50多年来第一个向美国国会发表讲话的德国领袖。

美国谴责朝鲜违背此前的承诺，继续生产大量核弹材料。美国还表示，这也违反了联合国的决议。朝鲜表示已完成8000根乏燃料棒的再处理工作，并将这些材料添加到武器储备中。

印度尼西亚警方称他们释放了两名主要的反腐官员。此前，这两人的被捕引起了公愤。这两名官员称，关于他们受贿的指控是由警方编造的，是为了损坏印度尼西亚强大的反腐委员会。

美国投资股神巴菲特(Warren Buffett)收购美国最大的铁路运营公司之一，这是他有史以来进行的最大的一笔交易。他表示，此举是对美国经济前景的“全盘下注”。Mark Gregory报道。

巴菲特旗下的伯克希尔哈撒韦公司(Berkshire Hathaway)购买了Burlington Northern 77%的股权。Burlington Northern拥有美国28个州的铁路运营权。此前，伯克希尔哈撒韦公司已拥有该铁路运营商23%的股权。这家位于得克萨斯州的铁路运营商此前的盈利主要来自货物运输。经过几十年无法阻止的下滑之后，最近美国铁路网络的运费开始复苏。巴菲特现在排在世界富豪榜第二位，以他的商业头脑著称。一旦他带头，一定会有其他投资者效仿。

英国政府将再次向两家最大的银行注资500亿美元，作为对银行业整顿的一部分。这笔资金将注入苏格兰皇家银行和劳埃德银行。两家银行均同意出售数百家主要街道分支银行，允许更多的竞争。在去年的金融危机期间，两家银行均接受了政府数十亿美元的救济款。

1 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

2 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

3 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

4 submissions   

n.提交( submission的名词复数 )；屈从；归顺；向法官或陪审团提出的意见或论据

参考例句：

• The deadline for submissions to the competition will be Easter 1994. 递交参赛申请的截止时间为1994年的复活节。 来自辞典例句
• Section 556(d) allows the agency to substitute written submissions for oral direct testimony in rulemaking. 第五百五十六条第（四）款准允行政机关在规则制定中用书面提交材料替代口头的直接证言。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

5 vocal   

adj.直言不讳的；嗓音的；n.[pl.]声乐节目

参考例句：

• The tongue is a vocal organ.舌头是一个发音器官。
• Public opinion at last became vocal.终于舆论哗然。

6 vociferous   

adj.喧哗的，大叫大嚷的

参考例句：

• They are holding a vociferous debate.他们在吵吵嚷嚷地辩论。
• He was a vociferous opponent of Conservatism.他高声反对保守主义。

7 biased   

a.有偏见的

参考例句：

• a school biased towards music and art 一所偏重音乐和艺术的学校
• The Methods: They employed were heavily biased in the gentry's favour. 他们采用的方法严重偏袒中上阶级。

8 confrontational   

adj.挑衅的；对抗的

参考例句：

• Fans love rappers partly because they strike such a confrontational pose. 乐迷热爱这些饶舌艺人一定程度上是因为他们所采取的那种战斗姿态。 来自互联网
• You prefer a non confrontational approach when it comes to resolving disputes. 面对争端，你不喜欢采用对抗性的手段来解决。 来自互联网

9 gasps   

v.喘气( gasp的第三人称单数 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• He leant against the railing, his breath coming in short gasps. 他倚着栏杆，急促地喘气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• My breaths were coming in gasps. 我急促地喘起气来。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 beleaguered   

adj.受到围困[围攻]的；包围的v.围攻( beleaguer的过去式和过去分词)；困扰；骚扰

参考例句：

• The beleaguered party leader was forced to resign. 那位饱受指责的政党领导人被迫辞职。
• We are beleaguered by problems. 我们被许多困难所困扰。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

13 myopic   

adj.目光短浅的，缺乏远见的

参考例句：

• The Government still has a myopic attitude to spending.政府在开支问题上仍然目光短浅。
• Myopic views could be potentially damaging for us.目光短浅会给我们带来严重的后果。

14 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

15 binding   

有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的

参考例句：

• The contract was not signed and has no binding force. 合同没有签署因而没有约束力。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding. 双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

16 batch   

n.一批(组，群)；一批生产量

参考例句：

• The first batch of cakes was burnt.第一炉蛋糕烤焦了。
• I have a batch of letters to answer.我有一批信要回复。

17 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

18 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

19 bribery   

n.贿络行为，行贿，受贿

参考例句：

• FBI found out that the senator committed bribery.美国联邦调查局查明这个参议员有受贿行为。
• He was charged with bribery.他被指控受贿。

20 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

21 revival   

n.复兴，复苏，（精力、活力等的）重振

参考例句：

• The period saw a great revival in the wine trade.这一时期葡萄酒业出现了很大的复苏。
• He claimed the housing market was showing signs of a revival.他指出房地产市场正出现复苏的迹象。

22 acumen   

n.敏锐，聪明

参考例句：

• She has considerable business acumen.她的经营能力绝非一般。
• His business acumen has made his very successful.他的商业头脑使他很成功。

23 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

24 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

25 bailed   

保释，帮助脱离困境( bail的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Fortunately the pilot bailed out before the plane crashed. 飞机坠毁之前，驾驶员幸运地跳伞了。
• Some water had been shipped and the cook bailed it out. 船里进了些水，厨师把水舀了出去。