BBC World Service News
第二页:中英双语听力稿
President Obama has welcomed home some of the last US troops to return from Iraq to mark the end of nearly nine years of America's combat role in the country. Mr Obama was speaking at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. He said he wanted to convey the gratitude of the American people to their military and described the moment as historic.
奥巴马欢迎从伊拉克撤回的美国军队,这次撤回标志着美国结束在伊拉克9年所扮演的角色。奥巴马在北加州的布拉格堡发表演讲,称希望向军队表达美国人民的感激之情,称这一时刻是历史性的。
"One of the most extraordinary chapters in the history of the American military will come to an end. Iraq's future will be in the hands of its people. America's war in Iraq will be over."
“美国历史上最非凡的篇章就要结束了,伊拉克的未来将在伊拉克人民的手中,美国在伊拉克的战争要结束了。”
Mr Obama praised the soldiers' courage and professionalism in a war that he said had come with the heavy cost in dead and wounded. Kim Ghattas reports.
奥巴马表扬士兵在战争中的勇气和专业作风,称为战争付出了巨大的伤亡成本。Kim Ghattas报道。
This was a war that Barack Obama never wanted, and now he's brought it to a close. As a state senator, he had called the Iraq war "dumb". As a commander in chief, he had to pay tribute to the sacrifices of his troops. He told them their fighting and dying had not been in vain. It had led to what he said was this moment of success. They were leaving behind a country that was not perfect, but Iraq, he said, was now stable, led by its own people.