(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
US Defense Secretary Makes Surprise Visit to Afghanistan
U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter made a surprise stop in Afghanistan Tuesday.
Carter was in the country to meet with President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, as well as U.S. commanders.
The visit comes days after an agreement with international leaders to support Afghanistan with 12,000 NATO troops.
NATO allies also agreed to provide more funding for the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces through 2020.
In a press conference Tuesday with President Ghani, Carter discussed Afghanistan's economic and anti-corruption reforms. He said the government's progress on those reforms "is central" to the continued international support for the country.
Also on Tuesday, Carter said under new power, General Mick Nicholson, commander of U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan, has greater freedom to strike at the Taliban.
Before the new changes, Nicholson and his forces could only intervene against the Taliban when Afghan government troops requested assistance.
More U.S. troops to remain in Afghanistan
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama announced last week that close to 8,400 U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan through the end of his presidency in January 2017. That is more than the Obama administration had originally planned.
More than 2,000 of the remaining U.S. troops will support the U.S. counterterrorism mission. The mission will target al-Qaida as well as Islamic State fighters trying to take control in eastern Afghanistan.
词汇解析
1.meet with 偶然遇见；遭受
They will surely meet with due punishment.
他们一定会受到应得的惩罚。
2.press conference 记者发布会
He called a press conference.
他举行了一次记者招待会。
3.the end of ...末尾
The rent is due at the end of each quarter.
缴纳租金以每季度末为期限。
4.close to 接近
The building is conveniently located close to public transportations．
房子地理位置好，附近有公共交通。
内容解析
1.Carter was in the country to meet with President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, as well as U.S. commanders.
as well as 和...一样；也
Boys as well as girls are taught cookery in school these days.
现在学校里男女学生都学烹饪。
He composed mystery stories as well as love poems.
他既写爱情诗也写神秘故事。
2.That is more than the Obama administration had originally planned.
originally planned 原计划
The conference was originally planned to open in March.
会议原计划于三月开幕。
We originally planned on a one-week vacation, but we decided to make it two weeks instead.
我们原本计划放假一周，但后来决定改成两周。
参考译文
美国国防部长突访阿富汗
周二，美国国防部长阿什·卡特（Ash Carter）突访阿富汗。
卡特与阿富汗总统阿什拉夫·加尼（Ashraf Ghani）、行政长官阿卜杜拉·阿卜杜拉（Abdullah Abdullah）及美国指挥官举行了会晤。
北约达成为阿富汗支援12000名士兵的协议仅数天后，卡特进行了此次访问。
2020年之前，北约还将继续为阿富汗国防军和安全部队提供更多的资金支持。
周二，卡特在与阿富汗总统加尼举行的记者会上讨论了阿富汗的经济和反腐败改革。他表示，阿富汗政府的改革是国际支援该国的“核心动力”。
周二卡特还表示，在新政权下，驻阿富汗美军兼国际部队指挥官米克·尼科尔森将军攻击塔利班时更加自由。
而此前，尼科尔森及其部队只有在阿富汗政府军请求援助时才能介入打击塔利班军事行动中。
更多美军驻守阿富汗
同时奥巴马还在上周宣布，将在明年1月其总统任期结束前，在阿富汗保留约8400名美军士兵。这远超奥巴马政府原先规划的时间。
超2000多名留守美军将支援美国的反恐任务。打击的目标为基地组织及试图控制阿富汗东部的“伊斯兰国”武装分子。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
