BBC News with John Jason
President Barack Obama has called on the Chinese authorities to release the Nobel Peace Prize winner, Liu Xiaobo, who's currently serving an 11-year jail sentence for subversion. Mr Obama said the way Beijing had treated the dissident was a reminder of the country's continuing need for political reform. Iain MacKenzie reports.
Barack Obama was speaking as both the United States president and a previous peace prize laureate. He received the award in 2009 for his efforts to bring peace to the Middle East. A statement from the White House praises Liu Xiaobo as a courageous spokesman for the advancement of human rights. And while the president goes on to acknowledge that economic progress has helped Beijing lift many citizens out of poverty, he said the case of Liu Xiaobo served as a reminder that political reforms had lagged far behind.
The Chinese government has responded angrily to the award, describing Mr Liu as a criminal and summoning the Norwegian ambassador in Beijing to protest.
Arab League ministers meeting in Libya have endorsed the Palestinian decision to halt all direct peace talks with Israel unless it agrees to stop construction of illegal Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. But the ministers also said in a statement that the United States should be given another month in its efforts to break the impasse. The direct peace talks began in September but broke down quickly when Israel refused to extend a partial moratorium on illegal settlement building.United States National Security Adviser James Jones is stepping down, the fifth senior official in the Obama administration to resign in a matter of weeks. He's to be replaced by his deputy, Tom Donilon. Speaking at a press conference, President Obama said this had been a plan all along.
"When I talked to Jim about taking this job shortly after the election, it was a difficult decision for him. He had just retired from the military, had a wide range of family obligations. But because of his patriotism, his dedication to keeping America safe, we were able to agree that he would serve, but he asked that (we would) he would serve for about two years."
China and Turkey have agreed on what they describe as a new strategic partnership during a visit by the Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao. The economies of both countries are among the fastest-growing in the world, and the partnership aims to boost trade. Here is our correspondent in Turkey Jonathan Head.
After battling with Europe over his currency, the Chinese premier must have found his welcome here in Turkey, something of a relief. There was no mention of the undervalued renminbi by his Turkish hosts, and although Turkey is concerned about the huge imbalance of their mutual trade in China's favour, it masks those concerns behind a bold declaration that they would boost their trade eightfold to $100 billion over the next 10 years.
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Intelligence officials in Pakistan say another suspected American air attack has killed at least five people in the northwest close to the Afghan border. Officials said two missiles hit a house used by Islamic militants in North Waziristan. On Thursday, Pakistan repeated its call for the United States to stop the increasing number of cross-border attacks.
The United States has expressed its deep disappointment at Guinea-Bissau's decision to reinstate an alleged drugs kingpin as head of the navy. The US accuses Rear Admiral Jose Americo Bubo Na Tchuto of playing a key role in international drugs trafficking. This report from Aidan Lewis.
Rear Admiral Bubo Na Tchuto had led Guinea-Bissau's navy until 2008 when he was suspected of plotting a failed coup. He fled into exile in Gambia before returning to Guinea-Bissau disguised as a fisherman late last year. Now the rear admiral has said he feels vindicated by his reinstatement and that he'll push for stability and reconciliation. But Washington says his return is a step backwards. There are growing fears in the US and its western allies that Guinea-Bissau will remain unstable and poor unless its leadership cuts its ties with Latin American drugs cartels.
A former bank executive in Nigeria has been sentenced to six months in prison for fraud and ordered to hand over more than $1 billion in cash and assets. Cecilia Ibru is the first former senior bank official to be sentenced following a financial crisis in Nigeria last year. A number of top executives of several other banks face charges of corruption and share price manipulation.
The World Health Organization says there's been a sixfold increase in a deadly parasitic disease, visceral leishmaniasis, in south Sudan. It says more than 300 people have died in the past 12 months from the disease, which is often spread by sand-fly bites. Symptoms include a high fever and weight loss, and it's almost always fatal if untreated.
BBC News
美国总统奥巴马要求中国释放诺贝尔和平奖得主刘晓波。刘晓波因“颠覆国家政权罪”被判处11年有期徒刑,目前正在服刑。奥巴马说,北京当局处理异己分子的方式提醒人们中国进行政治改革的需要。Iain MacKenzie报道。
奥巴马是以美国总统和前诺贝尔和平奖得主的双重身份发表讲话的。2009年,奥巴马因给中东地区带来和平而获奖。来自白宫的一份声明称赞刘晓波是推进人权的勇敢的发言人。奥巴马总统承认经济进步帮助北京政府使许多人脱离贫困,然而,他表示,刘晓波的案件使人们想起中国远远滞后的政治改革。
中国政府对刘晓波获诺贝尔和平奖反应非常强烈。他们称刘晓波是罪犯,传唤挪威驻北京大使表示抗议。
阿拉伯联盟各国部长在利比亚会晤,他们一致赞成巴勒斯坦的决定,如果以色列不停止在被占领的西岸的定居点建设活动,将终止与以色列的所有直接和平对话。但是这些部长在一份声明中表示,应该再给予美国一个月的时间来打破僵局。直接和平对话在9月份开始,但是,由于以色列拒绝将非法定居点的部分冻结延期,谈判很快破裂。
美国国家安全顾问詹姆斯·琼斯(James Jones)即将辞职,这是几周内奥巴马政府辞职的第五位高级官员。他的职位将由副手汤姆·多尼伦(Tom Donilon)接替。奥巴马总统在新闻发布会上表示,这是计划已久的安排。
“大选过后不久,我跟他说起接替该职位的问题。这对他来说是一个艰难的决定。他刚刚从军队退役,承担着一系列家庭责任。但是由于他的爱国主义精神,他保护美国安全的诚信,我们最终达成一致,他将就任该职位,但是他要求只工作两年的时间。”
中国国务院总理温家宝访问期间,中国和土耳其就新的战略合作伙伴协议达成一致。两国都是世界上经济发展最快的国家,该战略合作伙伴关系旨在促进贸易。驻土耳其记者Jonathan Head报道。
与欧洲各国进行了货币之争后,中国国务院总理温家宝在土耳其受到了热烈欢迎,这使他非常得以释怀。土耳其并没有提到人民币汇率过低的问题,然而,土耳其对中国巨大的贸易顺差表示担忧。他们将自己的担忧隐藏在一个大胆的宣布中,他们称未来十年之内,使自己的贸易额增加八倍,达到1000亿美元。
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巴基斯坦情报官员表示,又一次疑似美国空袭造成西北部阿富汗边境附近造成至少5人死亡。官员们表示,两枚炸弹击中了北瓦齐里斯坦伊斯兰好战分子使用的一座房屋。周四,巴基斯坦再次要求美国停止不断增加的跨边境袭击。
几内亚比索决定重新启用一名被指控为毒品大王的人为海军统帅,美国对此表示失望。美国指控海军少将纳楚托(Bubo Na Tchuto)在国际毒品贩卖中发挥着重大作用。Aidan Lewis报道。
海军少将纳楚托(Bubo Na Tchuto)一直领导几内亚比索的海军,直到2008年涉嫌谋划军事政变未遂。他逃亡至冈比亚,后来在去年年末回到几内亚比索。现在,这位海军少将表示,能够复职让他感到自己是无罪的,他将坚决维护国家的稳定。但是华盛顿方面表示,他的回归是巨大的倒退。美国和西方盟国的担忧越来越严重,他们担心几内亚比索将继续保持动荡和贫穷,除非其领导层能够切断与拉丁美洲毒品卡特尔的联系。
尼日利亚一名前银行董事因诈骗被判处六个月的监禁,并被勒令交出超过10亿美元的现金和资产。伊布鲁(Cecilia Ibru)是自去年尼日利亚金融危机后被判刑的第一位银行高级官员。其他银行的几名高管也面临贪污和操纵股价的指控。
世界卫生组织表示,南苏丹致命的传染病内脏利什曼病患病率增加了六倍。WHO表示,过去的12个月,共有300多人因这种疾病死亡,这种病菌经常通过沙蝇叮咬传播。患病症状包括发烧,体重变轻,如果不进行治疗,通常会致命。
1.subversion n.颠覆,打倒,破坏
2.courageous adj.勇敢的;无畏的
例句:We all honor courageous people.
我们都尊重勇敢的人。
3.summon vt.传唤; 召集
例句:The general summoned all his officers.
将军把所有的军官召集在一起。
They summoned men to defend their country.
他们召集男人来保卫国家。
4.endorse v.赞同,认可,支持(意见,活动,某人等)
例句:to endorse someone’s opinion
赞成某人的意见
No one is foolish enough to endorse it.
没有哪个人会傻得赞成它。
5.impasse n.<法>绝境, 僵局, 停顿
例句:Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.
谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。
It remained for Mr Parkhill to break through the impasse.
只有等待帕克希尔先生来打破僵局了。
6.undervalued adj.售价过低的,贬值的
7.reinstate vt.使恢复原职;使恢复原有权利
例句:The firm reinstated the man who was wrongly dismissed.
商行把那个冤枉开除了的员工复职了。
8.vindicate v.表明或证明(所争辩的事物)属实、正当、有效等
例句:Subsequent events vindicated the policy.
后来的事实证明那政策是对的。
维护
例句:He tried hard to vindicate his honor.
他拼命维护自己的名誉。
9.manipulation n.(熟练的)操作;操纵;控制
例句:People think that the investigation was independent, but in fact a lot of political manipulation went on.
人们以为调查是独立进行的,但事实上有很多政治力量的操控。
10.fatal adj.致命的
例句:Her children's death is a fatal blow on her.
孩子们的死对她是致命的打击。
1.President Barack Obama has called on the Chinese authorities to release the Nobel Peace Prize winner, Liu Xiaobo, who's currently serving an 11-year jail sentence for subversion.
call on要求, 请求
例句:He called on his friends to help him.
他向朋友求助。
2.United States National Security Adviser James Jones is stepping down, the fifth senior official in the Obama administration to resign in a matter of weeks.
step down退休, 辞职
例句:The manager had to step down on account of poor health.
那位经理由于身体不好, 只能辞职不干。
3. Now the rear admiral has said he feels vindicated by his reinstatement and that he'll push for stability and reconciliation.
push for急切、强烈地要求, 为…奋力争取
例句:People living near the airport are pushing for new rules about night flight.
住在机场附近的人们正强烈要求制订出夜航班机的新规。
He pushed me for an answer.
他催我作出答复。
4.A former bank executive in Nigeria has been sentenced to six months in prison for fraud and ordered to hand over more than $1 billion in cash and assets.
hand over交出; 交付; 交给
例句:You must hand over your passport before you leave.
离境前必须交回护照。
The material was handed over to the department just in time.
材料及时地交给了有关部门。
1.Symptoms include a high fever and weight loss, and it's almost always fatal if untreated.
if省略句
为了简洁起见,有的状语从句(如时间状语从句、条件状语从句、方式状语从句等)有时可省略从句的主语和部分谓语(尤其是当从句主语与主句主语一致,且从句谓语包括有动词be时):
I’d like to see you whenever (it’s) convenient. 在你方便的时候我想来看看你。
If (you are) traveling north,you must change at Leeds. 如果你是向北行,你必须在里兹换车。
【注】有些由if构成的省略结构,已属固定短语,如if any, if necessary, if possible, if not, if so:
There are few, if any, mistakes in that book. 那本书就是有错误也不多。
If necessary, ring me at home. 如果必要,可以打电话到我家找我。
If possible, I wish to go there next summer. 如果可能,我希望明年夏天去。
He may be busy. If so, I’ll call later. If not, can I see him now? 他可能很忙,要是这样,我以后再来拜访。要是不忙,我现在可以见他吗?