戈尔巴乔夫警告:美俄对立使世界到达“危险点”

AS IT IS 2016-10-15 Gorbachev Warns US-Russia Tensions Are at ‘Dangerous Point’ 戈尔巴乔夫警告:美俄对立使世界到达“危险点”

Former Soviet¹ leader Mikhail Gorbachev warned this week that tensions between Russia and the United States have reached a “dangerous point.”

His comments followed a series of issues that have strained relations between Washington and Moscow. Among them are the war in Syria and U.S. accusations² that Russia is involved in cyber attacks aimed at disrupting U.S. elections next month.

“I think the world has reached a dangerous point,” Gorbachev told RIA Novosti, Russia’s state news agency. The former leader said he did not have any specific advice for either country.

“But I do want to say that this needs to stop,” he said. “We need to renew dialogue. Stopping it was the biggest mistake.”

Gorbachev, 85, is credited with easing years of tensions between the Soviet Union and the West. He led the country from 1985 to 1991. He signed several important nuclear disarmament deals with the United States during his rule. In 1990, he received the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts.

On October 3, the United States said it was giving up its efforts with Russia to negotiate a cease-fire in Syria. U.S. officials noted³ continued military attacks against civilian⁴ targets in the nation.

Russia answered the American actions by suspending a number of nuclear cooperation agreements with the United States. It also moved to build up its military forces in Syria and along the Russian border with Europe.

Recently, Russia deployed⁵ Iskander missiles to a base in Kaliningrad, which sits on the Baltic coast between Poland and Lithuania. Those missiles are able to travel about 500 kilometers in the air and carry nuclear weapons.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier wrote in the Bild newspaper about the deployment⁶. He said he thought it created a more dangerous situation than during the Cold War when the Soviet Union competed against the West.

Some military experts agree. Igor Sutyagin is with London’s Royal United Services Institute.

“The dramatic reaction of the West about Iskander [missiles] now is that it is just a wake-up call, it is just a very clear message. It is that ice-cold bucket of water that (says), ‘Wake up, you are not living in a safe world.’”

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union deployed large missiles in what was then East Germany and Czechoslovakia. Sutyagin says this time around, the missile deployment is more psychological.

“The idea is to intimidate⁷ the West. Because Russia does not have any other tools to fight for its competitiveness in the international arena⁸ but psychology⁹. Even the Russian military are comparatively weaker than NATO’s forces.”

Other issues have also increased tensions between Russia and the United States.

Last week, U.S. officials accused the Russian government of being involved in attacks on American computer systems. They suspect those cyber attacks are meant to disrupt the U.S. elections next month.

The cyber activity resulted in thousands of emails being leaked from the Democratic National Committee last July. In the past, U.S. officials had said they suspected Russian involvement in the leak. But in a statement last week, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Homeland Security went farther, to actually name Russia.

“We believe, based on the scope and sensitivity of these efforts, that only Russia's senior-most officials could have authorized¹⁰ these activities,” the statement said.

In reaction, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said U.S. officials were creating what he called “anti-Russian hysteria.” He accused the U.S. administration of using “dirty methods” to blame Russian cyber attackers ahead of the U.S. elections.

Words in This Story

strain – v. to add tension beyond proper limits

disrupt – v. make something not be able to normally continue

renew – v. to restart or continue

dialogue – n. discussions; communications

wake-up call – n. something that happens to cause a person to take action

bucket – n. a round, open container used to carry liquids

psychological – adj. relating to the human mind and feelings

intimidate – v. make someone afraid

scope – n. extent of treatment, activity or influence

sensitivity – n. an awareness¹¹ and understanding of other people

hysteria – n. – extreme fear, excitement or anger

1 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

2 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

3 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。

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

6 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

7 intimidate   

vt.恐吓，威胁

参考例句：

• You think you can intimidate people into doing what you want?你以为你可以威胁别人做任何事？
• The first strike capacity is intended mainly to intimidate adversary.第一次攻击的武力主要是用来吓阻敌方的。

8 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

9 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

10 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

11 awareness   

n.意识，觉悟，懂事，明智

参考例句：

• There is a general awareness that smoking is harmful.人们普遍认识到吸烟有害健康。
• Environmental awareness has increased over the years.这些年来人们的环境意识增强了。