04-15-08

布希令增加兩億美元食品援助 (Bush Orders $200 Million Increase in Food Aid)

美國總統布希下令為全世界貧窮國家增加2億美元緊急糧食援助。白宮星期一發表聲明說，增加的援助是為了應對糧食漲價帶來的影響。價格上漲導致了食品短缺和社會動蕩。

聯合國秘書長潘基文星期一說，全球各地迅速加劇的糧食危機已經達到緊急的程度。他敦促採取緊急和長期措施處理全球食品危機。

白宮發言人佩裏諾早些時候說，布希總統“非常關注”，並已經下令美國政府有關部門研究如何能進一步提供幫助。

President Bush has ordered a 200-million dollar increase in U.S. emergency food aid for needy countries worldwide. The White House issued a statement Monday saying the additional aid will address the impact of rising food prices. Rising prices have been blamed for food shortages and social unrest.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Monday that the rapidly escalating crisis of food availability around the world has reached emergency proportions. He urged both immediate and long-term measures to tackle the global food crisis.

Earlier, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said President Bush is "very concerned" and that he has ordered U.S. government agencies see what more can be done to help.

北韓紀念已故領袖冥辰，晉陞三十五名將軍 (North Korea Marks Birthday of Late Leader, Promotes 35 Generals)

北韓領導人金正日星期二晉陞35名將軍，紀念這個共產黨國家的主要節日之一、他已故父親的生日。北韓官方媒體報導說，金正日為慶祝這個節日，提拔了兩名中將和33名少將。金正日經常利用諸如生日之類的重大節日提拔軍事將領，這些人是他領導層的中堅力量。

金正日的父親金日成死於1994年，終年82歲，但仍然保留著“不朽的主席”的稱呼。

金正日在父親死後接管了北韓。儘管北韓瀕於崩潰的經濟以及1990年代中期爆發造成數十萬人死亡的饑荒，金正日依然維持著強烈個人崇拜。

North Korean leader Kim Jung Il marked one of the communist country's biggest national holidays Tuesday, the birthday of his late father, by promoting 35 generals. North Korea's state media reported that Kim promoted two officers to lieutenant general and 33 others to major general to mark the holiday. Kim often uses major holidays such as birthdays to promote military generals, the backbone of his leadership.

Kim's father, Kim Il Sung died in 1994 at the age of 82, but still holds the title of "eternal president."

The younger Kim took over the country after his father's death and has maintained a strong personality cult, despite North Korea's collapsing economy and a famine in the mid-1990s that left hundreds of thousands dead.