English 中文网 漫画网 爱新闻iNews 翻译论坛
中国网站品牌栏目(频道)
当前位置: Language Tips > Special Speed News VOA慢速

Greek spending cuts clear way for loans

[ 2011-07-04 16:27]     字号 [] [] []  
免费订阅30天China Daily双语新闻手机报:移动用户编辑短信CD至106580009009

Greek spending cuts clear way for loans

This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.

Greece has approved a plan to raise taxes, cut spending and sell government-owned assets. This clears the way for 17 billion dollars in loans from the International Monetary Fund and the European Union. The loans are a share of the 156-billion-dollar rescue deal that Greece secured last year.

The money will help the government to operate and pay its debts until the middle of September. But the austerity plan led to a national strike on Tuesday and Wednesday, along with violent demonstrations in Athens.

(SOUND)

Several hundred protesters and police were injured.

The Greek parliament approved the 40-billion-dollar plan on Wednesday and the details on Thursday. Prime Minister George Papandreou won more support than expected for his proposals. He appealed to parliament to do everything possible to avoid defaulting on the debts of the birthplace of democracy.

Greece is expected to seek more international help, even though years of government borrowing led to the crisis.

Many protesters said their government is making decisions that serve the interests of wealthy nations.

WOMAN: "I want to feel Greek again. But I'm not Greek. I'm German, I'm American. I don't know what I am."

But other Greeks, including this man, see the need for austerity.

MAN: "I think the policies are a good step towards finding common ground with the European Union, which is I think a vision that all Greeks should aspire to. I don't think any country can operate in isolation these days, especially a country the size of Greece."

Greek spending cuts clear way for loans

Also this week, the International Monetary Fund chose French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde as managing director. Ms. Lagarde received support from the United States and European nations as well as Russia, Brazil and China. Her five-year term starts Tuesday.

Dominique Strauss-Khan had to resign in May. He is under house arrest in New York, charged with sexually attacking a hotel maid. He denies the charges.

The international lender has always been led by a European, but Ms. Lagarde will be the first woman.

Ms. Lagarde has promised to be a strong voice for developing countries, especially in Asia and Africa. But international monetary expert Domenico Lombardi says being a European will also help.

DOMENICO LOMBARDI: "And one key factor in guiding this decision is certainly the ability for Christine Lagarde as a European coming from a key euro area country to exert pressure, leverage on her European fellow finance ministers in terms of taking a more aggressive stance on the European crisis."

And that's the VOA Special English Economics Report. I'm Steve Ember.

Related stories:

Greece crippled by protests

Rough road ahead for Greece despite austerity measures

IMF继任者之争:欧洲还是全世界?

Strauss-Kahn enters plea

(来源:VOA 编辑:崔旭燕)

 
中国日报网英语点津版权说明:凡注明来源为“中国日报网英语点津:XXX(署名)”的原创作品,除与中国日报网签署英语点津内容授权协议的网站外,其他任何网站或单位未经允许不得非法盗链、转载和使用,违者必究。如需使用,请与010-84883631联系;凡本网注明“来源:XXX(非英语点津)”的作品,均转载自其它媒体,目的在于传播更多信息,其他媒体如需转载,请与稿件来源方联系,如产生任何问题与本网无关;本网所发布的歌曲、电影片段,版权归原作者所有,仅供学习与研究,如果侵权,请提供版权证明,以便尽快删除。
 

关注和订阅

人气排行

翻译服务

中国日报网翻译工作室

我们提供:媒体、文化、财经法律等专业领域的中英互译服务
电话:010-84883468
邮件:translate@chinadaily.com.cn