EU Pulls Ambassadors Out of Belarus

 　　European Union members are pulling all their ambassadors from Belarus after its the authoritarian¹ government ordered the Polish and EU ambassadors out of the country.

　　Belarus ordered the envoys² to leave in reaction to new EU sanctions imposed against Belarusian officials because of that country's poor human rights record.

　　A Belarusian foreign ministry³ spokesman says the country will not cave in under pressure and will continue to defend its interests.

　　"The decision of the EU Council to impose new sanctions against Belarussian officials means that the European Union is continuing with its policy of unabashed pressure," said the spokesman. "We explained many times and at all levels thatthis policy does not have any prospects⁴ in regards to Republic of Belarus. As a response, Belarus will forbid entry to Belarus to those individuals who helped introduce those restricting measures.''

　　German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle calls Belarus Europe's last dictatorship. He says President Alexander Lukashenko only fools himself if he thinks he can divide the EU.

　　"This is the last dictatorship, this is the last dictator in Europe, and we will not let ourselves be intimidated⁵ by such actions against one European institutions or against one member state," said Westerwelle. "The European Union and Poland can rely on Germany's solidarity⁶. We will not let others divide us. The dictator fools himself when he thinks he can divide us. We will react together. I suggest that we all recall our ambassadors from Belarus to our capitals. This is what Germany will do.''

　　State Department spokesman Mark Toner says the United States it deeply regrets Belarus' decision to expel the Polish and EU ambassadors. He says such moves only deepen Belarus' self-isolation.

　　The EU and United States increased sanctions on Belarus after the violent crackdown on the opposition⁷ following the December 2010 presidential election. Hundreds were arrested including a number of opposition candidates.

　　Human rights groups say many of those arrested are still in jail.

　　Lukashenko won reelection in a vote many opposition members say was fraudulent.

　　The head of the EU delegation⁸ to Belarus and the ambassador of Poland to Belarus have also been offered to leave to their capitals to bring the message to their leadership about a strong view in Belarus that any pressure

　　or sanctions are inadmissible. If the pressure on Republic of Belarus is to continue, other measures to defend our interests will also be taken.''

1 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

2 envoys   

使节( envoy的名词复数 )； 公使； 谈判代表； 使节身份

参考例句：

• the routine tit for tat when countries expel each other's envoys 国家相互驱逐对方使节这种惯常的报复行动
• Marco Polo's travelogue mentions that Kublai Khan sent envoys to Malgache. 马可波罗游记中提到忽必烈曾派使节到马尔加什。

3 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

4 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

5 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

7 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

8 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。