2008《國情諮文》節選(2)

In Iraq, the terrorists and extremists are fighting to deny a proudpeople their liberty and fighting to establish safe havens for attacks across the world.

　　One year ago, our enemies were succeeding in their efforts to plungeIraq into chaos, so we reviewed our strategy and changed course.

　　We launched a surgeof American forces into Iraq. We gave our troops a new mission: Work with the Iraqi forces to protect the Iraqi people, pursue the enemy in his strongholds, and deny the terrorists sanctuaryanywhere in the country.

　　The Iraqi people quickly realized that something dramatic had happened.

　　Those who had worried that America was preparing to abandon them instead saw tens of thousands of American forces flowing into their country. They saw our forces moving into neighborhoods, clearing out the terrorists and staying behind to ensure the enemy did not return. And they saw our troops, along with provincial reconstruction teams that include Foreign Service officers and other skilled public servants, coming in to ensure that improved security was followed by improvements in daily life.

　　Our military and civilians in Iraq are performing with courage and distinction, and they have the gratitudeof our whole nation.

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　　The Iraqis launched a surge of their own.

　　In the fall of 2006, Sunni tribal leaders grew tired of al Qaeda's brutalityand started a popular uprising called the Anbar Awakening. Over the past year, similar movements have spread across the country.

　　Today, the grassroots surge includes more than 80,000 Iraqi citizens who are fighting the terrorists.

　　The government in Baghdad has stepped forward as well, adding more than 100,000 new Iraqi soldiers and police during the past year.

　　While the enemy is still dangerous and more work remains, the American and Iraqi surges have achieved results few of us could have imagined just one year ago.

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　　When we met last year, many said that containing the violence was impossible. A year later, high-profile terrorist attacks are down; civilian deaths are down; sectarian killings are down.

　　When we met last year, militia extremists, some armed and trained by Iran, were wreaking havoc in large areas of Iraq.

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　　When we met last year our troop levels in Iraq were on the rise. Today, because of the progress just described, we are implementing a policy of return on success, and the surge forces we sent to Iraq are beginning to come home.

　　This progress is a credit to the valorof our troops and the brilliance of their commanders.

　　This evening, I want to speak directly to our men and women on the front lines, soldiers and sailors, airmen, Marines and Coast-guardmen.

　　Our nation is grateful for your courage. We are proud of your accomplishments.

　　And tonight, in this hallowedchamberwith the American people as our witness, we make you a solemnpledge: In the fight ahead, you will have all you need to protect our nation.

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　　And I ask Congress to meet its responsibilities to these brave men and women by fully funding our troops.

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　　Our enemies in Iraq have been hit hard. They are not yet defeated and we can still expect tough fighting ahead.

　　Our objective in the coming year is to sustain and build on the gains we made in 2007, while transitioningto the next phase of our strategy. American troops are shifting from leading operations to partnering with Iraqi forces and eventually to a protective over-watch mission.

　　As part of this transition, one Army Brigade Combat team and one Marine Expeditionary Unit have already come home and will not be replaced. In the coming months, four additional brigades and two Marine battalionswill follow suit.

　　Taken together, this means more than 20,000 of our troops are coming home.

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　　Any further drawdownof U.S. troops will be based on conditions in Iraq and the recommendations of our commanders.

　　General Petraeus has warned that too fast a drawdown could result in, quote,"the disintegrationof the Iraqi security forces, al Qaeda- Iraq regaining lost ground, and a marked increase in violence."

　　Members of Congress, having come so far and achieved so much, we must not allow this to happen.

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　　In the coming year, we will work with Iraqi leaders as they build on the progress they're making toward political reconciliation.

　　At the local levels, Sunnis, Shiite and Kurds are beginning to come together to reclaim their communities and rebuild their lives. Progress in the provinces must be matched by progress in Baghdad.

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　　We're seeing some encouraging signs. The national government is sharing oil revenues with the provinces. The parliament recently passed both a pension law and de-Baathification reform. They're now debating a provincial powers law.

　　The Iraqis still have a distance to travel. But, after decades of dictatorshipand the pain of sectarianviolence, reconciliation is taking place and the Iraqi people are taking control of their future.

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　　The mission in Iraq has been difficult and trying for our nation, but it is in the vital interest of the United States that we succeed.

　　A free Iraq will deny al Qaeda a safe haven. A free Iraq will show millions across the Middle East that a future of liberty is possible. A free Iraq will be a friend of America, a partner in fighting terror and a source of stability in a dangerous part of the world.

　　By contrast, a failed Iraq would embolden the extremists, strengthen Iran and give terrorists a base from which to launch new attacks on our friends, our allies and our homeland.

　　The enemy has made its intentions clear.

　　At a time when the momentum seemed to favor them, al Qaeda's top commander in Iraq declared that they will not rest until they have attacked us here in Washington.

　　My fellow Americans, we will not rest either. We will not rest until this enemy has been defeated.

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　　We must do the difficult work today so that, years from now, people will look back and say that this generation rose to the moment, prevailedin a tough fight and left behind a more hopeful region and a safer America.