2006年VOA标准英语-Georgia Moves Away From Russia and Toward Europ

By Andre de Nesnera
Washingon
13 October 2006

Georgia's president hopes to steer¹ his country toward the West, and diminish Russia's influence.  In this report from Washington, VOA Senior Correspondent André de Nesnera looks at the intricate relationships between Washington, Moscow and Tbilisi.

-----

Mikhail Saakashvili  
  
Mikhail Saakashvili was elected president of Georgia by an overwhelming margin² in January 2004, following a popular movement known as the Rose Revolution that forced the resignation of the incumbent³, former Soviet⁴ Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze.

On the foreign policy front, Mr. Saakashvili is trying to move Georgia away from Russia and toward Europe. His first goal is to make Georgia a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO.

During a July 5th meeting at the White House, U.S. President George Bush repeated to President Saakashvili that Washington supports Georgia's membership.

He said, "I believe that NATO would benefit with Georgia being a member of NATO, and I think Georgia would benefit. And there is a way forward through the membership action plan, and we will work with our partners in NATO to see if we can't make the path a little smoother for Georgia."

Georgia's drive toward NATO membership is a contentious⁵ issue between Mr. Saakashvili and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Ronald Suny is a Russia expert with the University of Chicago.

"If you think back to Soviet times and their victory over the fascists⁶ in 1945, all of the gains of that post-war victory - that military victory - are gone. The Soviets⁷ have lost Eastern Europe, their buffer⁸ zone there, the sort of satellite states they held for decades - and now Ukraine, the Baltics, and others are integrated into the western alliance," he said.  "In other words, NATO troops could be right on the border of Russia. This is an enormous blow to Russian prestige. And Putin, if anything, aims at resurrecting Russia to get some of that power and prestige that the Soviet Union enjoyed."

 
NATO
  
In addition to supporting Georgia's NATO membership, the United States has provided Tbilisi with extensive economic aid to support its domestic reform programs.

Robert Legvold, a Russia expert with Columbia University, says the assistance has also included a military component⁹.

"We have, since early 2003, provided military training under a program called G-TEP - Georgia Train and Equip Program - for a modernized¹⁰ battalion¹¹ of Georgian forces in counterterrorism exercises. And, we have continued to provide considerable military assistance to the Georgians in bringing the military up to snuff [modernizing], as they proceed toward NATO membership," he said.

Experts on Russia say many officials in Moscow see Georgia's move toward the West as a threat because they still consider Tbilisi to be in Russia's sphere of influence - a throwback to Soviet times. Once again, Ronald Suny of the University of Chicago.

"The Soviet sphere of influence would certainly have to include the former states of the Soviet Union, the former republics of the Soviet Union - perhaps with the exception of the Baltic region, because that is so well integrated now in Europe. But it [Moscow] still has various kinds of ambitions, aspirations¹² vis-à-vis Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and central Asia," he said. "The most important thing about Georgia is that Georgia has become a kind of prize in a very low level, but important contest between the West, particularly the United States, and Russia. And both are vying¹³ for influence in Georgia, and the Georgian president, Saakashvili, is playing the American card very often."

Some experts - including Olga Oliker from the RAND Corporation - believe playing the American card as it were, could be a double-edged sword.

"From the perspective of the United States, that is not necessarily in the U.S. interest. Yes, the U.S. has a friendly relationship with Georgia, but it also has a fairly friendly relationship with Russia that it would like to maintain," she said. "And, it is not in the U.S. interest to allow the Georgian-Russian relationship to damage its own ties with the Russians. And, I think that is something the United States has been trying to avoid."

Oliker says the Georgians are playing a dangerous foreign policy game. She says, trying to win stronger allies by provoking a strong neighbor could have negative consequences for Georgia.

1 steer   

vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶

参考例句：

• If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车，我就来驾车。
• It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。

2 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

3 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

4 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。

5 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

6 fascists   

n.法西斯主义的支持者( fascist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists. 老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Zoya heroically bore the torture that the Fascists inflicted upon her. 卓娅英勇地承受法西斯匪徒加在她身上的酷刑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 soviets   

苏维埃（Soviet的复数形式）

参考例句：

• A public challenge could provoke the Soviets to dig in. 公开挑战会促使苏联人一意孤行。
• The Soviets proposed the withdrawal of American ballistic-missile submarines from forward bases. 苏联人建议把美国的弹道导弹潜艇从前沿基地撤走。

8 buffer   

n.起缓冲作用的人(或物)，缓冲器；vt.缓冲

参考例句：

• A little money can be a useful buffer in time of need.在急需时，很少一点钱就能解燃眉之急。
• Romantic love will buffer you against life's hardships.浪漫的爱会减轻生活的艰辛。

9 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

10 modernized   

使现代化，使适应现代需要( modernize的过去式和过去分词 )； 现代化，使用现代方法

参考例句：

• By 1985 the entire railway network will have been modernized. 等到1985年整个铁路网就实现现代化了。
• He set about rebuilding France, and made it into a brilliant-looking modernized imperialism. 他试图重建法国，使它成为一项表面华丽的现代化帝业。

11 battalion   

n.营；部队；大队(的人)

参考例句：

• The town was garrisoned by a battalion.该镇由一营士兵驻守。
• At the end of the drill parade,the battalion fell out.操练之后，队伍解散了。

12 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

13 vying   

adj.竞争的；比赛的

参考例句：

• California is vying with other states to capture a piece of the growing communications market.为了在日渐扩大的通讯市场分得一杯羹，加利福尼亚正在和其他州展开竞争。
• Four rescue plans are vying to save the zoo.4个拯救动物园的方案正争得不可开交。