2006年VOA标准英语-Russia's State-Controlled Gas Monopoly to

By Bill Gasperini
Moscow
09 April 2006

Russia's state-controlled gas monopoly, Gazprom, says it plans to triple the price that neighboring Belarus must pay for its gas. Gazprom has already raised the prices it charges some other former Soviet¹ republics.

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On the surface, Russia is a staunch supporter of Belarus and its controversial leader, President Alexander Lukashenko, who many in the West call Europe's last dictator.

Mr. Lukashenko has been in power for 12 years, and by official count, won an overwhelming victory for an unprecedented² third term in last month's election.

Russia quickly congratulated the long-time ruler on his victory, which most of the world criticized as being marred³ by fraud.

The United States and European Union plan to impose new sanctions against the Lukashenko government in response to the elections.

Most analysts⁵ say Russia supports Belarus as a kind of buffer⁶ zone on its western border, and because the Kremlin is angered by what it calls Western meddling⁷ in what it considers its backyard - the former Soviet republics.

However, the Russian backing is not unconditional⁸. And the move to increase gas prices is primarily seen as a means for Gazprom to gain control of Belarus's gas pipeline⁹ transit¹⁰ system, run by the state company Beltransgaz.

Roman Yelagin is an oil-and-gas analyst⁴ with the Renaissance¹¹ Capital firm in Moscow. He says the Russian gas giant has made similar moves in other neighboring countries, such as Armenia. "Such deals are closely linked with Gazprom's ambitious policy to take control over the gas pipeline assets in countries, in exchange for the lower, or stable gas prices," he said.

Beltransgaz carries a large proportion of Russian gas to key markets in Western Europe, and Gazprom has a stated goal of consolidating¹² its hold on the gas market.

It also needs to increase capital, in order to build new pipelines¹³ and improve existing infrastructure¹⁴.

Gazprom has already raised rates for gas to other ex-Soviet republics, including Georgia, Moldova and, most notably¹⁵, Ukraine.

A demand that Kiev accept a four-fold price increase in January sparked a crisis, when it cut off supplies on New Year's Day, a move that also lowered the flow of gas to Western Europe.

A deal was quickly reached for a lower price increase, amid harsh international criticism that the Kremlin was using Gazprom as a political tool over nations that have turned away from Russia politically. Russia denied the price increases were politically motivated.

Belarus currently pays $47 per 1,000 cubic meters of gas, far below the European price of $230.

Gazprom Deputy Chairman Alexander Riyazanov says there is nothing political in the decision to raise prices. Riyazanov says Belarus is the only one of the former Soviet nations to pay a low price, and that talks will begin soon to decide on a new price to take effect next January.

Russia has, in fact, tried to raise rates Belarus pays before, and, on at least two occasions, Gazprom has even cut off supplies.

This happened most recently in January 2004, when President Lukashenko finally promised to sell Beltransgaz.

However, no deal has been reached, partly because Russia values the company at $600,000, while Belarus insists it is worth several billion dollars. Roman Yelagin, the oil and gas analyst, says this is a process of bargaining. "It is also part of the discussion between Gazprom and the Belarussian government. It is aiming to (push the) Belarussian government to finalize¹⁶ their final position in the discussion, in the negotiation¹⁷ process," he says.

Economists¹⁸ say that a steep gas price increase would threaten Belarus's command Soviet-style economy, which in turn could threaten Mr. Lukashenko's grip on power.

Few believe the Kremlin wants to see Mr. Lukashenko fall.

Personal relations between Mr. Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin have often been strained, even though the two leaders have long discussed a possible union of the two countries.

But a lot now depends on whether the two can agree on a satisfactory outcome to the gas issue.

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 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

3 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

4 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

5 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

6 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。

7 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

8 unconditional   

adj.无条件的，无限制的，绝对的

参考例句：

• The victorious army demanded unconditional surrender.胜方要求敌人无条件投降。
• My love for all my children is unconditional.我对自己所有孩子的爱都是无条件的。

9 pipeline   

n.管道，管线

参考例句：

• The pipeline supplies Jordan with 15 per cent of its crude oil.该管道供给约旦15%的原油。
• A single pipeline serves all the houses with water.一条单管路给所有的房子供水。

10 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。

11 renaissance   

n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴

参考例句：

• The Renaissance was an epoch of unparalleled cultural achievement.文艺复兴是一个文化上取得空前成就的时代。
• The theme of the conference is renaissance Europe.大会的主题是文艺复兴时期的欧洲。

12 consolidating   

v.（使）巩固， （使）加强( consolidate的现在分词 )；（使）合并

参考例句：

• These measures are meant for consolidating the system of basic medical care. 这些举措旨在夯实基层医疗体系，让老百姓看大病不必出远门。 来自互联网
• We are consolidating the Chinese and English versions of our homepage. 我们将为您提供中英文版本一起的主页。 来自互联网

13 pipelines   

管道( pipeline的名词复数 )； 输油管道； 在考虑（或规划、准备） 中； 在酿中

参考例句：

• The oil is carried to the oil refinery by pipelines. 石油通过输油管输送到炼油厂。
• The oil carried in pipelines. 石油用管道输送。

14 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

15 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

16 finalize   

v.落实，定下来

参考例句：

• Let us finalize tonight.让我们今天晚上干完
• 。At the same time,industrial designers work with engineers to finalize components and assembly.同时，工业设计师和工程师一道来完成部件和组装部分的工作。

17 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

18 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》