Annan warns Iraq is 'on the brink'_时事要闻

Annan warns Iraq is 'on the brink'

文章来源：文章作者：发布时间：2006-09-19 03:34 字体： [大中小]　进入论坛

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U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan and Iraq 's President Jalal Talabani (L)attend a meeting about Iraq at the U.N. in New York Monday, Sept. 18, 2006. World leaders are in New York for the United Nations General Assembly.

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing meets with his South Korean counterpart Ban Ki-Moon during a high-level panel discussion on Iraq at United Nations in New York Monday, Sept. 18, 2006

Sept. 19 - UN Secretary General Kofi Annan warned Iraqi and US leaders that urgent action must be taken now to drag Iraq back from the brink¹ of all-out civil war.

Annan told a special meeting on the strife²-torn nation at UN headquarters, attended by Iraq's President Jalal Talabani and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, that international efforts were needed to end the spiralling violence and reestablish confidence in the government.

With scores of people being killed each day by suicide bombers³ and partisan⁴ militias⁵, the UN chief said it was "heartbreaking" that "the everyday life of Iraqi people is dominated by the constant threat of sectarian violence and civil strife."

Annan said Iraq, which was invaded by a US-led force in 2003, had made "important progress" in the past two years with two national elections, a constitutional referendum and a constitutional process.

He said that if Iraqi leaders "can address the needs and common interests of all Iraqis, the promise of peace and prosperity is still within reach".

"But if current patterns of alienation⁶ and violence persist much longer, there is a grave danger that the Iraqi state will break down, possibly in the midst of full-scale civil war," he said.

US leaders have denied that there is a civil war in Iraq despite the scope of the violence.

Annan said however action must be taken in Baghdad and internationally to "bring Iraq back from the brink".

The UN chief called on Iraq's leaders to make stronger efforts to "defuse rising sectarian tensions" on top of a national reconciliation⁷ plan launched by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.

Annan backed an Arab League proposal to hold a national conference in Baghdad to discuss issues such as federalism and the sharing of revenues.

"Many of Iraq's neighbours have legitimate⁸ concerns about instability inside that country. Iraq must remain sensitive to these apprehensions⁹. The neighbours, for their part, must also be responsive to Iraqi security needs," he said.

A meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia of interior ministers from Iraq and seven other Middle East countries brought a promise to step up efforts to stem the flow of foreign fighters into Iraq.

The six Arab states plus Iran and Turkey undertook to "put more effort towards taking necessary measures in guarding and controlling the borders and ports to combat smuggling¹⁰ and infiltration¹¹ of terrorists from and into Iraq and prevent using forged travel documents."

At the UN meeting, Iraq's president Talabani said that a national compact drawn¹² up by the government in Baghdad would provide major change in Iraq over the next five years.

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1 brink
n.(悬崖、河流等的)边缘，边沿
参考例句：
The tree grew on the brink of the cliff.那棵树生长在峭壁的边缘。 The two countries were poised on the brink of war.这两个国家处于交战的边缘。

2 strife
n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争
参考例句：
We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。 Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

3 bombers
n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 )；投弹手；安非他明胶囊；大麻叶香烟
参考例句：
Enemy bombers carried out a blitz on the city. 敌军轰炸机对这座城市进行了突袭。来自《简明英汉词典》 The Royal Airforce sill remained dangerously short of bombers. 英国皇家空军仍未脱离极为缺乏轰炸机的危境。来自《简明英汉词典》

4 partisan
adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒
参考例句：
In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。 The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

5 militias
n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )
参考例句：
The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。来自辞典例句 The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。来自互联网

6 alienation
n.疏远；离间；异化
参考例句：
The new policy resulted in the alienation of many voters.新政策导致许多选民疏远了。 As almost every conceivable contact between human beings gets automated,the alienation index goes up.随着人与人之间几乎一切能想到的接触方式的自动化，感情疏远指数在不断上升。

7 reconciliation
n.和解，和谐，一致
参考例句：
He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。 Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

8 legitimate
adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法
参考例句：
Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。 That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

9 apprehensions
疑惧
参考例句：
He stood in a mixture of desire and apprehensions. 他怀着渴望和恐惧交加的心情伫立着。 But subsequent cases have removed many of these apprehensions. 然而，随后的案例又消除了许多类似的忧虑。

10 smuggling
n.走私
参考例句：
Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。 The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

11 infiltration
n.渗透；下渗；渗滤；入渗
参考例句：
The police tried to prevent infiltration by drug traffickers. 警方尽力阻止毒品走私分子的潜入。来自《简明英汉词典》 A loss in volume will occur if infiltration takes place. 如果发生了渗润作用，水量就会减少。来自辞典例句

12 drawn
v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的
参考例句：
All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。 Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

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