VOA标准英语2009年-Russia: Arms Treaty with US Must Include M-英语课

时间：2019-01-13 作者：英语课 分类：VOA标准英语2009年(五月)

英语课

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said plans for a U.S. missile defense 1 system must be taken into account in a new strategic arms agreement being negotiated between Moscow and Washington.
　
Russian FM Sergey Lavrov looks on during a meeting in Moscow, 20 May 2009

Foreign Minister Lavrov said Russia will study basic proposals made by the U.S. delegation 2 at talks in Moscow aimed at negotiating a new arms control treaty to replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty which expires in December.

He spoke 3 at a news conference with visiting Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit as U.S.-Russian arms negotiators met behind closed doors for a second day to discuss the treaty.

Lavrov said the final outcome of current negotiations 4 should be a step forward compared to the existing treaty. He noted 5 the general principle of the treaty should be the equal security of both sides and the preservation 6 of parity 7 in the area of strategic stability.

Russia has strongly opposed a U.S. proposal to deploy 8 a missile defense system in Central Europe. The Kremlin rejects the U.S. contention 9 that the system would be designed to guard against a possible Iranian missile attack. Instead, Moscow sees the system as a threat to Russian security.

The current START treaty prohibits deployment 10 of more than 6,000 nuclear warheads on various delivery systems - intercontinental and submarine-launched ballistic missiles, as well as bombers 11. The agreement resulted in an 80 percent reduction in the number of U.S. and Russian strategic nuclear weapons, but both countries still have thousands of nuclear weapons.

On Tuesday, the EastWest Institute, a New-York based policy institute, issued a report by a group of American and Russian scientists that said the U.S. missile defense system that Moscow opposes would not offer dependable defense against an Iranian missile attack. The Institute said the more urgent task is for Russia, the United States and others to cooperate through diplomatic and political means to find a resolution of the crisis surrounding the Iranian nuclear program.

A new START treaty is seen as necessary for the United States and Russia to inspect and verify each other's nuclear arsenals 12. Among the differences negotiators need to overcome are the number of allowable warheads and whether the treaty will cover bombers and missiles. The U.S. is reported willing to count only warheads ready for launch. Russia wants to include those in storage as well.

1 defense

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

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。

2 delegation

n.代表团；派遣

The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

3 spoke

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说