2006年VOA标准英语-Koizumi Baffled By Attitude of China, S. K
时间：2019-02-03 作者：英语课 分类：2006年VOA标准英语（一月）
By Steve Herman
Tokyo
04 January 2006
Japan's prime minister, who just days earlier vowed 1 to improve relations with Asian neighbors in the new year, has lashed 2 out at criticism from Beijing and Seoul over his visits to a controversial shrine 3.
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In a nationally televised news conference Wednesday marking the start of government business for the new year, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi rapped China and South Korea for politicizing his annual pilgrimages to the Yasukuni war shrine.
Mr. Koizumi says he is baffled as to why some foreign governments insist on interfering 4 with a spiritual matter and try to twist it into a diplomatic issue. The prime minister insists his visits to the Tokyo shrine are meant to honor all of Japan's war dead and says he goes there to pray for world peace.
Several Asian nations have repeatedly called for an end to the pilgrimages because war criminals are enshrined there, along with hundreds of thousands of ordinary soldiers. A museum on the grounds of the shrine also glorifies 5 Japan's 20th century militarism. The Osaka High Court has ruled that Mr. Koizumi's visits are official acts that violate Japan's constitutional separation of religion and state, but other courts have not backed that ruling.
After Prime Minister Koizumi made his fourth visit since taking office in mid-October, both Beijing and Seoul canceled talks with Tokyo.
Mr. Koizumi said during his news conference that it is up to Beijing and Seoul to resume dialogue with Tokyo and he has a strong desire to see that happen.
The prime minister adds he has never tried to cut off communications with China and South Korea and the door remains 6 open. Mr. Koizumi says a single problem should not mean ending dialogue because every nation has differences of opinions with others.
Mr. Koizumi also said that Japan has a special relationship with the United States. He said he was not trying to suggest that Tokyo's relationship with Washington is the only one that matters but said it is more critical than ties with other countries because the United States is the only nation that sees an attack on Japan as an attack on itself.
- He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
- I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。
- The rain lashed at the windows. 雨点猛烈地打在窗户上。
- The cleverly designed speech lashed the audience into a frenzy. 这篇精心设计的演说煽动听众使他们发狂。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
- They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。
- He denies that the movie glorifies violence. 他否认这部影片美化暴力。
- This magazine in no way glorifies gangs. 这本杂志绝对没有美化混混们。