【Week 6】美古關係

Obama: My prayers are with the Cuban people

By Sophie Tatum

Updated 1844 GMT (0244 HKT) November 26, 2016

President Barack Obama reacted to the death of Fidel Castro in a statement released by the White House Saturday morning, offering condolences to his family and extending a hand of friendship to the Cuban people.

"During my presidency, we have worked hard to put the past behind us, pursuing a future in which the relationship between our two countries is defined not by our differences but by the many things that we share as neighbors and friends -- bonds of family, culture, commerce, and common humanity," Obama said, highlighting his efforts to mend US-Cuba relations during the course of his presidency.

"We know that this moment fills Cubans -- in Cuba and in the United States- - with powerful emotions, recalling the countless ways in which Fidel Castro altered the course of individual lives, families, and of the Cuban nation." The President added, "Today, we offer condolences to Fidel Castro's family, and our thoughts and prayers are with the Cuban people. In the days ahead, they will recall the past and also look to the future. As they do, the Cuban people must know that they have a friend and partner in the United States of America."

"As our two countries continue to move forward on the process of normalization -- restoring the economic, diplomatic and cultural ties severed by a troubled past -- we do so in a spirit of friendship and with an earnest desire not to ignore history but to write a new and better future for our two peoples," he said. "The United States reaffirms its support for deepening our engagement with the Cuban people now and in coming years."

Excerpt from:http://edition.cnn.com/2016/11/26/politics/president-obama-fidel-castro-death/

Structure of the lead:

Who: President Barack Obama

What: reacted to the death of Fidel Castro

How: in a statement

Why: to offer condolences to his family and extend a hand of friendship to the Cuban people

When: November 26, 2016

Where: Not given

Key Words:

condolence (n.)慰問
presidency (n.)總統任期
mend (v.)改良
normalization (n.)正常化
restore (v.)恢復
diplomatic (n.)外交
earnest (a.)熱切的
reaffirm (v.)重申