VOA标准英语2009年-US Vice President to Discuss Afghanistan with N

U.S. Vice¹ President Joseph Biden is heading to Brussels for talks Tuesday with NATO allies as Washington seeks greater European support in Afghanistan. Possible U.S. missile-defense² systems and ties with Russia may also be on the menu.
　
US Vice President Joe Biden addresses International Conference on Security Policy in Munich, 07 Feb 2009

Vice President Joseph Biden's visit to Brussels follows similar talks between NATO members and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton a few days ago, and just weeks before President Barack Obama attends a summit of the trans-Atlantic alliance in early April in France and Germany.

Afghanistan is expected to top the agenda during Tuesday's talks at NATO headquarters. The Obama administration is strengthening the U.S. military presence there by another 17,000 troops, and Washington is looking for greater contributions from a skeptical³ Europe.

Analyst⁴ Thomas Valasek, of the London-based Center for European Reform, says European nations may not be willing to offer more without a clear strategy of how to curb⁵ a growing insurgency⁶ in Afghanistan and instability in neighboring Pakistan.

"Some big, important questions are open: Do we speak to the Taliban, or not? What do we do with Pakistan where the situation seems to be going from bad to worse? How can we avoid the constant barrage⁷ of civilian⁸ causalities which is undermining the credibility and popularity of the NATO force in Afghanistan? On all those questions, they will want to have a clear answer from the vice-president, " said Thomas Valasek.

Other questions revolve⁹ around plans to place a U.S. missile shield in Poland and the Czech Republic. The Obama administration appears to be less enthusiastic about the project than the former Bush administration, but Valasek says other NATO members are increasingly looking at missile defense as an option.

"The alliance has now on several occasions said it, too, is considering some form of territorial¹⁰ defense against missile strikes and it has specifically fingered the possible U.S. missile-defense system as a possible backbone¹¹ of a future NATO missile-defense system," he said.

Mr. Biden may also raise the possibility of greater Russian cooperation on Afghanistan. Last week, NATO agreed to resume formal ties with Moscow, which were suspended after Russia's brief war with Georgia, last August.

1 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

2 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。

3 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

4 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

5 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

6 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

7 barrage   

n.火力网，弹幕

参考例句：

• The attack jumped off under cover of a barrage.进攻在炮火的掩护下开始了。
• The fierce artillery barrage destroyed the most part of the city in a few minutes.猛烈的炮火几分钟内便毁灭了这座城市的大部分地区。

8 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。

9 revolve   

vi.(使)旋转；循环出现

参考例句：

• The planets revolve around the sun.行星绕着太阳运转。
• The wheels began to revolve slowly.车轮开始慢慢转动。

10 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

11 backbone   

n.脊骨，脊柱，骨干；刚毅，骨气

参考例句：

• The Chinese people have backbone.中国人民有骨气。
• The backbone is an articulate structure.脊椎骨是一种关节相连的结构。