VOA慢速英语:Gates Says NATO Could Face 'Irrelevance' in the Future

短语讲解：

1. The blunt reality is that there will be dwindling appetite and patience in the US Congress -- and in the American body politic writ large -- to expend increasingly precious funds on behalf of nations that are apparently unwilling to devote the necessary resources or make the necessary changes to be serious and capable partners in their own defense.

on behalf of代表…; 为了…的利益
例句：You must act on behalf of our country.
你应该维护我们国家的利益。
devote to把…专用于, 完全用于(某事或做某事)
例句：He has been devoting his whole life to benefiting mankind.
他把自己的一生贡献给了造福人类的事业。

2. NATO was created in nineteen forty-nine to defend Western Europe against the Soviet Union.

defend against保护…不受…, 防御
例句：The fort cannot be defended against an air attack.
这座要塞遭到空袭时无法防御。

3. He noted that all twenty-eight members voted for the mission.

vote for投票赞成
例句：The candidate bribed them to vote for him.
该候选人贿赂他们投票给他。

4. But less than half have taken part at all, he said, and fewer than a third have been willing to participate in the campaign.

take part参加，参与
例句：He will take part in a quiz.
他将参加一场知识竞赛。
participate in分担; 参加
例句：The people are demanding a chance to participate more in government.
人民要求更多的参与政事的机会。

5. Despite more than two million troops in uniform - not counting the US military - NATO has struggled, at times desperately, to sustain a deployment of twenty-five thousand to forty-five thousand troops, not just in boots on the ground, but in crucial support assets.

at times有时, 间或
例句：His language is a bit vulgar at times.
他说话有时有点粗俗。

6. President Obama has called for an additional four hundred billion dollars in defense reductions.

call for要求；需要；提倡
例句：The crew of the ship are calling for a raise in pay.
这艘轮船上的全体船员正在要求增加工资。

7. Mr. Gates said nations must be responsible for their fair share of the common defense.

be responsible for为…负责,形成…的原因
例句：He should be responsible for that.
他应该对此事负有责任。

8. He warned about the future of NATO unless Europe stops cutting back on defense spending.

cut back on削减，缩减，减少
例句：We really need to cut back on our spending.
我们真的需要削减我们的开支。

9. The goal is to end United States military operations in that country by the end of twenty-fourteen.

by the end of到…为止
例句：He had finished his great works by the end of 1980.
到1980年底, 他已完成了他的巨著。

10. Several senators gave him credit for being the person President Obama named to head the effort that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden.

give credit for归功于某人; 赞扬某人
例句：I give them full credit for their work.
我高度赞扬了他们的工作。