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.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says the US and British military forces are ready to launch an attack on Iraq.
This is the first time that the US military build-up in the Gulf region has reached the point where U.S. and British forces are now ready to launch an attack on Iraq.
In an interview with American Public Television, Rumsfeld says the US forces can take military actions against Iraq if President George W. Bush decides to go to war.
But he refused to disclose the exact number of troops the US and Britain have gathered in the Gulf region.
Earlier, US defense officials said that there will be more than 200-thousand soldiers in the region by the end of this month.
***
The United States is preparing to present a new Iraq resolution to the United Nations Security Council next week.
On the same day, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein held a meeting with his senior military officials to discuss how to deal with the US military threat.
Iraq’s Foreign Ministry has allowed another U-2 surveillance plane to fly over Iraqi land, as Saddam Hussein's government tries to convince the world it is cooperating with weapons inspectors. It was the second time this week for a U-2 plane to be used.
Meanwhile, the EU’s External Affairs chief, Javier Solana says disarming Iraq should be achieved through the UN’s framework.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov says it’s necessary to implement the current UN resolution on Iraq. Since the Security Council has not yet passed a new resolution, it’s too early to say if Russia will use its right to veto.
Ivanov says UN inspectors currently face the pressure of either leaving Iraq or submitting papers which can be used as a pretext to use force against the country. Russia is concerned about this, and Ivanov stresses the UN can only determine whether or not Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction based on objective analysis of the inspection report.
In Paris, France and 52 African nations adopted a joint declaration calling for the disarmament of Iraq, but insisting that war should be the last resort in solving the crisis.
Jordan’s Foreign Minister stresses that the Arab Summit on March 1st will focus on finding ways to avoid a war in the middle-east.
The Bush administration is still waiting for Turkey’s response on whether it will allow US troops use its military bases to open a northern front in a possible war against Iraq.
In another development, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan has decided to extend Hans Blix’s term as head of the UN Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, till at least the end of this year.
***
North Korea’s Embassy in China has issued a statement saying the country hopes to solve the nuclear issue on the peninsular peacefully, but it will not beg for peace.
The statement says the US does not want to see a resolution on the issue, as it wants its troops to remain in South Korea while it deploys its national missile defense system.
The same day, South Korean President-Elect Roh Moo-hyun said South Korea won’t tolerate the North developing nuclear weapons, but that this issue must be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.
He warned North Korea not to do things that deteriorate the situation. He said South Korea will try to persuade the North to abandon its nuclear weapon development plan and help solve the problem through consultations with the US, Japan, China, Russia and the EU.
US president George W. Bush has written to Roh Moo-hyun to say he is willing to cooperate more closely with South Korea in solving the issue.
A US official says American and Japanese diplomatic and defense officials will hold a meeting on February 24 in Tokyo, to discuss both this issue and the possible resumption of trial launching of missiles.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov says Russia is ready to promote direct dialogue between the US and North Korea.
Meanwhile, the Japanese official called for a measured reaction to the issue, and Japan hopes to consult with the US, South Korea and other related countries as well as the Security Council members over the issue.
***
Brazilian Vice President Jose Alencar has met with a media delegation led by Xu Guangchun, Minister of China's Radio, Film and Television Administration.
Speaking at the meeting, Xu Guangchun says the two countries are culturally very well linked, and he hopes to find a mutually beneficial method of development. He believes that this will allow both sides to learn from one other, as well as to increase mutual friendship.
Brazil Broadcasting Company also signed agreements with China Radio International and China Central Television. They agreed to hold a film week next year in both countries, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations
***
China is to launch a multi-million dollar environmental project to protect the biological diversity of southwest China's Sanjiangyuan Wetland, where three major rivers including the Yangtze, the Yellow River and the Lancang River originate.
Located on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the Sanjiangyuan Wetland is China's highest and largest natural wetland. It has suffered from environmental damage in recent years. The State Council has decided to set up a state-level natural reserve there in an effort to prevent the local ecological environment from deteriorating any further.
Sources say the protective measures will include a herd ban, restoration of wetland vegetation and protection of wild animals and their habitats.
***
China's Ministry of Information Industry says by the end of January, the country's total number of fixed and mobile phone subscribers had reached 430 million, ranking China number one in the world.
Over the past month alone, 9.4 million new users have been added to the total.
Meanwhile, the mobile short message industry has become a major new economic development sector.
The State Drug Administration, says China will step up the authentication process of drug enterprises in an effort to bring them up to the standards of the Good Supply Practice.
Sources say those that fail to meet the standards by the end of 2004 will have their licenses revoked.
Currently more than 140 drug management enterprises have passed the authentication.
*****
Government departments have saved the country 20 billion yuan, or over eight billion US dollars, over the past five years by clamping down on corruption and bribery.
According to Xinhua, many corruption charges have been brought against officials, including mayors and one provincial vice-governor.
More than 10 thousand officials above county level have been punished for taking bribes.
*****
Beijing will soon relax its regulations on housing purchases.
One change is that people without a permanent Beijing residence permit will have the same right to housing in the city as the local people. To buy an apartment, they will simply show their ID, instead of applying for approval beforehand.
In addition, the procedures will be simplified. For example, residence permit will need to be shown.
*****
A company in central China has successfully produced the country's first case for a 34-inch flat screen color TV set.
The Ancai Group Company, a major display equipment maker in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan Province, will find a huge market for the large cases, which until now had to be imported.
The company will produce 600,000 units a year, earning some 350 million yuan, or 42 million US dollars.
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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