高中英语 VOA常速听力2012年08月合辑（文本）Experts-Tightening-Iran-Sanctions-Hurts-Ordinary-Iranians素材.docVIP

高中英语 VOA常速听力2012年08月合辑（文本）Experts-Tightening-Iran-Sanctions-Hurts-Ordinary-Iranians素材 Iran is hosting a summit for dozens of nations in the Non-Aligned Movement, while some of those countries are complying with U.S. and international sanctions against Tehran for its nuclear program. Iran says its atomic program is for peaceful purposes. Tehrans refusal to address international concerns about its atomic ambitions has forced the United States and the United Nations to tighten sanctions on Iran. U.S. authorities are investigating the Royal Bank of Scotland and Germanys second-biggest lender, Commerzbank, in an effort that already has led to large fines for others caught doing business with Iran. Effects of sanctions Irans economy has suffered greatly from the sanctions, according to David Tafuri, a partner at the Washington D.C.-based law firm Patton Boggs, which is active in Middle East development. Its certainly made it difficult for Iran to sell oil, which is the main source of funds for Iran, he said. So Iran needs money, not just to keep the economy going, but to continue these weapons programs. But Jamal Abdi, policy director of the National Iranian American Council, says U.S. policy toward Iran is doing more harm than good. Weve gone from a policy that was supposed to be smart sanctions or targeted sanctions instead to ones that are designed to cripple the entire Iranian economy, and this is a counterproductive approach, he said. This hurts ordinary people. It obstructs rather than facilitates diplomacy. And at the end of the day, I think its going to put us on a collision course for a military confrontation with Iran. So what do ordinary Iranians think? A lot of people see the reason behind the sanctions, which is the nuclear crisis, but they dont see that. A lot of people dont see that connected to their daily lives, said Negar Mortazavi, host of VOA Persian News Networks Straight Talk program. But they see sanctions connected to their daily