UN Security Council Approves International Force for Afghanistan
Breck Ardery
United Nations
20 Dec 2001 21:25 UTC
The United Nations Security Council has unanimously approved a resolution authorizing an international security force for Afghanistan.
The resolution authorizes the force for a six-month period to assist the interim Afghan government in providing security in and around the Afghan capital of Kabul. The resolution calls on all Afghans to cooperate with the security force and notes that all Afghan parties have agreed to withdraw their military units from Kabul.
Jeremy Greenstock
Britain will be leading the force and British ambassador Jeremy Greenstock told reporters the first group of troops will arrive in Kabul in time for the official start of the interim government on Saturday. "The United Kingdom is ready to go," he said. "We will have a small number of troops on the ground on the day, Saturday, in Kabul. The full British contingent will be in place a certain number of days thereafter."
Mr. Greenstock said if the interim government decides it wants the security force to deploy outside of the Kabul area, it would require a additional Security Council resolution.
AP
John Negroponte
United States ambassador John Negroponte said U.S. military forces will continue to operate in Afghanistan but not as part of the security force. "Our forces are there with a particular set of responsibilities, which is to root out the al-Qaida and fight against the remnant elements of the Taleban. In other words a war-fighting mission," he said.
Mr. Negroponte indicated that there should be no conflict between the mission of U.S. forces and the international security troops in Afghanistan.
DEVELOPMENT REPORT: Tuberculosis Control Program in India
By Jill Moss
Broadcast: December 9, 2002
This is the VOA Special English Development Report.
There are more people with tuberculosis in India than in any other country in the world. Each year, tuberculosis infects about two-million people in India and kills nearly five-hundred-thousand people. However, this is starting to change. Researchers
recently studied a tuberculosis control program in India. The study says the program has saved about two-hundred-thousand lives and more than four-hundred-million dollars.
The New England Journal of Medicine published a study about the tuberculosis control program in October. The Indian government started the program in nineteen-ninety-three. Since that time, about three-and-one-half million patients have been examined for tuberculosis. Almost eight-hundred-thousand patients have received medical treatment.
Also, more than forty percent of India's population can now get tuberculosis services. And more than two-hundred-thousand health workers have been trained to examine and treat people with the disease. This makes India's tuberculosis control program one of the world's largest public health programs.
Thomas Frieden of the United States was one of the people who wrote the study. He says that India's tuberculosis control program has strengthened the country's general health care system. For example, he says the quality of work done in laboratories has improved.
However, Doctor Frieden says the program includes only half of India. He says the goal is to continue the program while extending it to the rest of the country. Doctor Frieden believes this will be difficult because of health threats from the virus that causes AIDS and because some forms of tuberculosis are resistant to drugs.
Currently, the World Health Organization estimates that about one-third of the world's population are infected with the bacteria that cause tuberculosis. Tuberculosis becomes active in only about ten percent of all cases. However, it can remain in a victim's lungs for years or even a lifetime.
Infected people spread tuberculosis by releasing particles from their mouths when they cough, sneeze, spit or talk. Signs of the disease include high body temperature and coughing.
A person with active T-B must take medicine each day for six to nine months to halt progression of the disease.
This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss.
General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee Hu Jintao has called on Party members to work hard for the people's interests and the goal of building a well-off society in the whole country.
Hu Jintao made the remarks during his inspection tour to Xibaipo Village in North China's Hebei Province.
In his speech, Hu Jintao stresses the significance of maintaining the spirit of hardwork and struggling against difficulties. He also points out the need to curb the tendency to boast and squander.
After affirming achievements in the nations's development and construction, Hu Jintao points out the fact that as a developing country with 1.3 billion people, China still lags behind in the fields of productivity, science and technology, and education.
He also criticizes problems that still exist among some party members and officials, and urges party members to keep in close contact with the people and focus on working for their interests.
***
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue has refuted Japan's claim to 'renting’the Diaoyu Islands.
When asked about reports that Japan will rent the three uninhabited islands from their “private owner,” Zhang Qiyue says the Diaoyu Islands have been Chinese territory since ancient times, and any unilateral claim by Japan is invalid.
***
China's customs revenue has registered a record volume of 31 billion US dollars with great reduction in tariffs in the first year as a member of the World Trade Organization.
The figure signals that China's Customs has achieved the initial progress in coping with challenges from the organization.
As an important source of the country's financial income, the continuously increasing customs revenue has provided a financial support to the sustainable, steady and healthy development of the country's economy and the improvement of the macroeconomic regulation.
***
The housing standards of the Chinese people have greatly improved with the rapid growth of apartment construction and sales.
The Chinese government has provided strong support to the development of real estate in recent years, and housing purchases have become a hot spot in the Chinese economy.
Investment in real estate last year accounted for nearly one fourth of the total investment in fixed assets, and housing sales reached over 120 billion US dollars.
Nearly 80 percent of Chinese citizens now have their own residence, with an average of 20 square meters per person for city residents.
In addition to better construction quality, the environment of residential areas has also been improved with the spread of such ideas as 'healthy', 'green' and 'ecological' housing.
***
Figures released by the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation, or MOFTEC, show that exports of machinery and electronic products in the first 11 months of last year were worth more than 290 billion US dollars, accounting for over 48 percent of China's total exports.
MOFTEC officials attribute the surge to more value-added products being exported, and a rise in demand in the United States, Japan, the European Union and other markets worldwide.
***
The China Export Credit Insurance Company will offer a new insurance policy providing protection against political risks that foreign enterprises in China and Chinese enterprises in foreign countries may encounter.
The company will sign an agreement with the Multilateral Investment Guaranty Agency of the World Bank to jointly provide the guarantee for foreign enterprises in China. The move is to encourage more foreign enterprises to invest in China by creating a better investment and lowering their investment risks in the country. It is also designed to help Chinese enterprises explore and reduce their investment risks in overseas markets.
***
US stocks began the new year on a jubilant note on Thursday.
The Dow Jones industrial average's gain of about 266 points was the biggest points gain ever on the opening day of the year.
The Dow Jones industrial average jumped ocver 3 percent, to 8,607.
The technology-laced Nasdaq Composite Index soared 49.34 points, or 3.7 percent, to 1,385.
In Europe, London's FTSE 100 ushered in 2003 with a late
rally, with banks and telecoms leading the way after a surprise surge in U.S. manufacturing data eased concern over the world's largest economy.
The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed up 69 points or 1.7 percent to 4,009.
Germany's DAX ended up 7 percent or 212 points to
3105.
And in France, the benchmark CAC-40 index closed 4.28 percent higher to 3195.
A group of police officers who underwent a special English language course have made their debuts pounding the streets of Shanghai.
The group, made up of nine policemen with an average age of 24, took an oral language training lasting a month. Reports say they have grasped sufficient basic daily expressions to tackle traffic accidents and general public security cases.
More English speaking officers will be introduced in the rest of the city over the coming year.
*****
U.S. Consumer confidence unexpectedly fell in December as the outlook for employment worsened, energy prices rose and the stock market slumped during a period of heightened uncertainty around the globe.
The New York-based research group, Conference Board says its Consumer Confidence Index dropped more than 4 and a half points to 80 from that in November. It was the sixth time in seven months that consumers' sentiment soured.
*****
The euro has marked its first official birthday with its highest rating against the US dollar since November 1999.
Europe’s single currency closed out the year at just over 1 US dollar. The euro rose 18 per cent in value compared to the US dollar over the course of 2002.
Traders and analysts believe disparities between the two currencies can be attributed to US business scandals, terrorism concerns, and fears about a possible American war against Iraq.
*****
China Petrochemical Corporation, the country's second-largest oil company, says it plans to cut 24,000 jobs in 2003 to increase profitability.
The State-owned petroleum company, also known as Sinopec, aims to increase profit 21 percent in the new year to more than 1.8 billion U.S. dollars.
It will also raise crude runs and sell more oil products to cater to domestic demand.
The company says it eliminated 20,000 job positions in 2002.
1--Do you want black or white coffee?
2--White, please.
1--Look! There's a folk concert tomorrow evening.
Do you want to go?
2--I don't like folk music very much.
1--What kind of music do you like?
2--I like classical music. Do you?
1--Not very much. Classical music sends me to sleep.
2--I don't believe you.
1--It's true.
2--You are funny!
1--So are you! How about another coffee?
===================================
注解：
1）black or white coffee：加糖或加牛奶的称作white
coffee.什么也不加的称作black coffee.
2）folk concert：民间音乐会。folk作“民间的”、
“具有民族传说的”解。如folk dance，folk music,
folk songs, folk tale等。
3）classical：经典的。如classical music, classical
literature等。
4）How about...?（你以为）...怎么样？征询对方的意见时
常用的句型。如，征询关于时间安排的意见时，可以说How
about tomorrow？征询活动内容时可以说How about playing
tennis now?征询人选意见可以说How about Jane?等
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