The Olympic flame was lit(1) in Greece(2) on May tenth(3). The ceremony marked the beginning(4) of a long trip(5) through(6) Greece and Britain, which holds(7) the Summer(8) Olympics this year.
Greece has been(9) at the center of a political and economic struggle(10) that also(11) threatens(12) other European economies. It remains(13) unclear(14) if Greece will continue using the euro, or if its eurozone partners(15) can enact(16) reforms needed(17) to hold(18) the currency(19) group together.
On the day the Olympic flame was lit, Greek Socialist leader Evangelos Venizelos began(20) an attempt(21) to form a new government. It marked the third attempt to form a government in the week after parliamentary(22) elections.
Mr. Venizelos’ PASOK party(23) finished third in the elections. First, the conservative(24) New Democracy party attempted to form a government and failed(25). Then the leader of the leftist(26) Syriza coalition tried and failed.
He said the election results showed(27) the Greek(28) people had rejected deep(29) budget cuts(30) required by(31) international creditors(32). Budget-cutting austerity measures(33) have angered(34) Greeks.
The political situation in Greece raised(35) the possibility of the need for an emergency coalition or even(36) new elections. The political crisis also raised the possibility of punishment(37) by Greece’s eurozone creditors.
They could deny(38) future payments(39) from the financial rescue plan(40) that they agreed(41) to in February.
The agreement(42) is worth(43) about(44) one hundred seventy billion dollars in loans(45) and cancelled debt(46). The rescue is the second for Greece since(47) its debt crisis began in two thousand nine, and bigger than the first bailout(48).
On May tenth, euro-area governments released a five and a half billion dollar loan to Greece. But Greek officials(49) were said to have been unhappy(50) that over one billion dollars was withheld(51).
The failed efforts(52) to form a government raised concerns(53) that reforms can work in Greece. The country is now in its fifth(54) year of recession. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said borrowing(55) as a way to increase growth(56) would be a step backward(57). The leader of Europe’s biggest economy told her country’s parliament: “Growth(58) through structural reform is important and necessary.
Growth through debt would throw(59) us back to(60)
the beginning of the crisis.” For VOA Special English, I’m Carolyn
Presutti. To read, listen and learn English with stories about economics
and other topics, go to voaspecialenglish.com. You can also follow us
on Twitter and Facebook at VOA Learning English.(Adapted from a radio
program broadcast 11May2012)
1. The Olympic flame was lit = a chama olímpica foi acesa 2. Greece = Grécia 3. May tenth = Dez de Maio 4. Beginning = início 5. Trip = viagem 6. Through = através 7. Holds = realizar 8. Summer = verão 9. has been = tem sido 10. struggle = batalha, luta 11. also = também 12. threatens = ameaça 13. remains = permanence 14. unclear = incerto 15. partners = parceiros 16. enact = decretar 17. needed = necessário(a) 18. hold = manter 19. currency = moeda corrente 20. began = começou 21. attempt = tentativa 22. parliamentary = parlamentar 23. party = partido 24. conservative = conservador 25. failed = falhou 26. leftist = de esquerda 27. showed = mostrou 28. Greek = grego 29. Deep = profundo 30. budget cuts = cortes no orçamento 31. required by = exigido por 32. creditors = credores 33. austerity measures = medidas de austeridade 34. have angered = tem irritado 35. raised = levantou 36. even = até mesmo 37. punishment = punição 38. could deny = poderia negar 39. payments = pagamentos 40. rescue plan = plano de resgate 41. agreed = concordaram 42. agreement = acordo 43. is worth = vale 44. about = aproximadamente 45. loans = empréstimos 46. debt = dívida 47. since = desde 48. bailout = resgate (ajuda financeira) 49. officials = funcionários 50. unhappy = infeliz 51. withheld = retido 52. efforts = esforços 53. concerns = preocupações 54. fifth = quinto 55. borrowing = empréstimo 56. increase growth = aumentar o crescimento 57. step backward = passo para trás 58. Growth = crescimento 59. Throw = arremessar 60. back to = de volta para