VOA常速英语2007年-Russia's Putin Names Medvedev as Favored Succes

By Peter Fedynsky
Moscow
10 December 2007

Russian President Vladimir Putin is expressing support for the nomination¹ of First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev to be his successor in the Kremlin. The 42-year-old Medvedev has been named presidential candidate by four political parties, including the ruling United Russia Party. VOA Correspondent Peter Fedynsky reports from Moscow.

President Putin says the nomination of Dmitri Medvedev offers Russia a chance to establish a stable new government that will continue policies that have proven successful during the eight years of his administration.

Mr. Putin says he has worked closely with Dmitri Medvedev for more than 17 years and fully² supports his candidacy.

The Kremlin leader first picked Medvedev in the early 1990's to work in the external affairs department of the Saint Petersburg municipal government. The 42-year-old lawyer served as Mr. Putin's campaign manager in the year 2000. Subsequently, he has served as Kremlin chief of staff, and also chairman of the board of Gazprom, Russia's state energy monopoly. As first deputy prime minister, Medevedev has focused primarily on agriculture, medicine, housing, and education.

His record on social issues was noted³ by parliamentary speaker Boris Gryzlov, who spoke⁴ on behalf of the four political parties that advanced the Medvedev nomination.

Gryzlov says, we believe he is the most socially-oriented candidate. This is an individual who has shown very good abilities on national projects and implementation⁵ of democracy. Gryzlov says the main consideration is that Medvedev provided results.

Medvedev's name was placed in nomination by the country's ruling party, United Russia, as well as A Just Russia, the Agrarian⁶ Party and Civil Force.

What is not known is Medvedev's relations, if any, with various Russian security services known as the siloviki. These include the military and FSB (Federal Security Service), which is the successor to the KGB, where Vladimir Putin served as an agent.

Political analyst⁷ Andrei Kortunov of Moscow's Eurasia Foundation Research Center told the VOA Medvedev could face what he calls a political minefield with the siloviki and Russia's conservative, anti-Western elements.

Kortunov says when a person comes to power in Russia without a strong position regarding the siloviki, he may need to prove his loyalty⁸ to that segment of society - the establishment elite⁹ - by taking harsh steps that do not correspond with his own convictions.

The Russian presidential election is scheduled for March 2. It is widely assumed that the candidate with Mr. Putin's support will become his successor. He is prohibited by the Russian constitution from a third-consecutive term in office.

1 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

2 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

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 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

6 agrarian   

adj.土地的，农村的，农业的

参考例句：

• People are leaving an agrarian way of life to go to the city.人们正在放弃农业生活方式而转向城市。
• This was a feature of agrarian development in Britain.这是大不列颠土地所有制发展的一个特征。

7 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。

8 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

9 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。