2006年VOA标准英语-US Welcomes Georgia's Return of Russian Officer

By David Gollust
Washington
02 October 2006
 

		The United States has welcomed the return home of four Russian officers held in  Georgian police officers escort Russian officers Dmitry Kazantsev, second left, and Alexei Zavgorodny, second right, October 2, 2006

Georgia on spy charges, and says it hopes the move leads to a winding¹ down of political tensions between the two neighbors. President Bush discussed the issue by telephone Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

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Officials here say they are making no judgment² about the merit of the spy charges against the Russians that had leveled by Georgia. But they're expressing relief over their release, and hoping the action will help defuse growing tensions in the south Caucuses³.

The arrest of the Russian officers last week exacerbated⁴ Georgian-Russian tensions already inflamed⁵ by the dispute between the two countries over the status of the Georgian regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The crisis prompted weekend telephone appeals for restraint by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and it figured in a telephone conversation Monday between President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In a written statement, the State Department welcomed the release of the Russian officers and paid tribute to mediation⁶ efforts of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the OSCE, and its current chairman, Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht.

In a talk with reporters, Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Daniel Fried said he hoped the release will prompt Russia to end border restrictions⁷ imposed on Georgia in recent days and open the way to renewed efforts to resolve the so-called "frozen conflicts" over South Ossetia and Abkhazia:

"We hope that the return to Russia of the four [arrested Russians] will give everyone an opportunity to stand back and look at ways to make progress. Now look, emotions are high," said Fried. "But there is a way and the international community certainly supports peaceful, negotiated solutions to the frozen conflicts consistent with Georgia's territorial⁸ integrity. We have long encouraged Georgia to work with Russia, because that's important to Georgia's future. And we will continue to do what we can."

Fried welcomed the fact that despite the tensions, Russia is adhering to a 1999 agreement under which it is to close, by 2008, the bases in Georgia it has maintained since the breakup of the Soviet⁹ Union.

The nominal¹⁰ Russian peacekeeping presence in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, which began in 1994, has also been a major irritant between the two countries, with Georgia accusing the troops of actively¹¹ supporting Russian separatists.

Assistant Secretary Fried said the situations in the two areas are unstable¹² and threaten to deteriorate¹³ into violence at any time.

He said the United States stands ready to increase efforts with the Moscow and Tbilisi governments and other concerned parties to try to resolve the issues, and has proposed specific ideas including expansion of OSCE monitoring and curbing¹⁴ illegal trafficking of goods in the disputed areas.

1 winding   

n.绕，缠，绕组，线圈

参考例句：

• A winding lane led down towards the river.一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
• The winding trail caused us to lose our orientation.迂回曲折的小道使我们迷失了方向。

2 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

3 caucuses   

n.（政党决定政策或推举竞选人的）核心成员( caucus的名词复数 )；决策干部；决策委员会；秘密会议

参考例句：

• Republican caucuses will happen in about 410 towns across Maine. 共和党团会议选举将在缅因州的约410个城镇进行。 来自互联网

4 exacerbated   

v.使恶化，使加重( exacerbate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The symptoms may be exacerbated by certain drugs. 这些症状可能会因为某些药物而加重。
• The drugs they gave her only exacerbated the pain. 他们给她吃的药只是加重了她的痛楚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 inflamed   

adj.发炎的，红肿的v.（使）变红，发怒，过热( inflame的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His comments have inflamed teachers all over the country. 他的评论激怒了全国教师。
• Her joints are severely inflamed. 她的关节严重发炎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 mediation   

n.调解

参考例句：

• The dispute was settled by mediation of the third country. 这场争端通过第三国的斡旋而得以解决。
• The dispute was settled by mediation. 经调解使争端得以解决。

7 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

8 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。

9 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。

10 nominal   

adj.名义上的；(金额、租金)微不足道的

参考例句：

• The king was only the nominal head of the state. 国王只是这个国家名义上的元首。
• The charge of the box lunch was nominal.午餐盒饭收费很少。

11 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

12 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

13 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。

14 curbing   

n.边石，边石的材料v.限制，克制，抑制( curb的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Progress has been made in curbing inflation. 在控制通货膨胀方面已取得了进展。
• A range of policies have been introduced aimed at curbing inflation. 为了抑制通货膨胀实施了一系列的政策。