斯诺登在中转区内停留时间没有限制

 　　MOSCOW - Russian laws do not limit the time for US intelligence whistleblower Edward Snowden's stay at the transit¹ zone of a Moscow airport, the Justice Ministry² said Saturday.

　　"Russian law does not stipulate³ the duration of time for which a foreign citizen may stay in the airport's transit zone or liability for staying for a long time in an airport's transit zone without documents," the ministry said in a statement quoted by the Interfax news agency.

　　When a foreign citizen applies for a temporary stay on Russian territory, a territorial⁴ body of the Federal Migration⁵ Service (FMS) will make a decision on whether to grant a temporary asylum⁶ within three months, the statement said.

　　When granted asylum and passing a mandatory⁷ medical examination, the person "is entitled to receive a standard certificate from a territorial FMS body," it added.

　　Vladimir Volokh, head of the FMS' public council, said Friday that Snowden, who has been in Sheremetyevo airport's transit zone for more than a month, could be stuck there for another half a year until his legal status is cleared.

　　Volokh noted⁸ that as Snowden "has been hunted," remaining in the airport's transit area was preferable to transferring him to an FMS refugee shelter for security reasons.

　　On Thursday, US Ambassador to Moscow Michael McFaul said Washington had asked Russia not to "extradite" Snowden but to "hand him over" to the US authorities.

　　But President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia would not hand over Snowden to his home country.

1 transit   

n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过

参考例句：

• His luggage was lost in transit.他的行李在运送中丢失。
• The canal can transit a total of 50 ships daily.这条运河每天能通过50条船。

2 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。

3 stipulate   

vt.规定，（作为条件）讲定，保证

参考例句：

• International rules stipulate the number of foreign entrants.国际规则规定了外国参赛者的人数。
• Some manufacturers stipulate the price at which their goods are to be sold.有些制造商规定出售他们生产的商品的价格。

4 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

5 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

6 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

7 mandatory   

adj.命令的；强制的；义务的；n.受托者

参考例句：

• It's mandatory to pay taxes.缴税是义务性的。
• There is no mandatory paid annual leave in the U.S.美国没有强制带薪年假。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。