voa标准英语2008年-Ukraine's NATO Bid Increases Tensions with Mosc

Tensions between Ukraine and Russia have increased during the past year partly as a result of a move by Ukrainian leaders to join NATO's Membership Action Plan, a step that has drawn¹ strong Russian opposition². But as VOA's Peter Fedynsky reports, Russian anxieties may be premature³ because a majority of Ukrainians oppose NATO membership, and the country does not yet meet alliance standards.

Graffiti in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities reflect polls that indicate more than half of Ukrainians oppose NATO membership.

Resistance is strong in the country's Russian-speaking eastern and southern regions. Elderly residents in Sevastopol, home of Russia's Black Sea Fleet, have been especially outspoken⁴.

A member of a local pro-Russian group, Albina Gontovaya, fears NATO ships could someday replace those of Russia.

Gontovaya says she and others in Sevastopol can no longer stand the situation with Ukraine, which she accuses of treating them badly. The retiree says nothing good can be expected and she is even resigned to war.

Sevastopol was founded in the late 18th century under Russian Empress Catherine the Great, a hero to many of the city's ethnic⁵ Russians who constitute more than 70 percent of the population of more than 340,000. They oppose NATO's eastward⁶ expansion and share Russia's fear of encirclement by the alliance.

The head of the local Russian Bloc⁷ and a Sevastopol City Council member, Gennadi Basov, questions the need for NATO membership.

Basov asks if NATO is a defense⁸ alliance, then who is Ukraine defending itself against? He says it is another matter if NATO is an aggressive bloc for sending troops to fight in Iraq, Afghanistan or Pakistan, adding that would be another reason for Ukrainians not to join the alliance.

In April, NATO rejected Ukraine's bid for a Membership Action Plan, a program designed to prepare prospective⁹ members for the alliance. NATO requires each country to meet certain military and democratic standards and does not guarantee membership.

NATO's representative in Ukraine, Belgian national Michel Duray, says the alliance has had an office in Kyiv for 11 years to explain the standards and advantages of membership.

Duray says NATO is not only about tanks against tanks, but it is also about the environment, controlling social instability, and cyber-security, noting there are many aspects included in the notion of security.

Moscow opposes NATO's eastward expansion. In February, then Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to target Russian nuclear missiles at Ukraine if NATO missiles were deployed¹⁰ there.

The U.S. has been a strong supporter of NATO membership for Ukraine. U.S. Vice¹¹ President Dick Cheney traveled to Kyiv in September to underscore the point.

There is strong resistance to NATO in the Ukrainian parliament. Lawmaker Dmytro Tabachnyk, who is often accused of being pro-Russian, favors Ukrainian membership in the European Union, but not in NATO.

Tabachnyk says some hold that NATO is an economic growth club, an argument he rejects, pointing out that some of the most developed, wealthy and socially-secure nations in Europe - Austria, Switzerland, Finland and Sweden - do not belong to NATO. He concludes that economic advancement¹², social protections and civil society are not the same as membership in a military alliance.

In Sevastopol, Sergei Kulyk of the independent NOMOS research institute says Ukraine's size, geo-strategic position and economic potential will not allow the country to remain neutral.

Kulyk says that unfortunately, Ukrainian politicians and leaders have declared a multi-vector policy, but that it is difficult for Ukraine to sit on the fence. He maintains, therefore, that Ukrainians must ultimately decide whether to join Europe or orient their country toward Russia.

Analysts¹³ say Russia will only push Ukraine over the NATO issue to the extent Ukrainians allow themselves to be pushed. And Moscow seems likely to exploit this issue as long as it takes Ukrainians to agree on a common position and values - pro-NATO, pro-Russian, or neutral.

1 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

2 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

3 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

4 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

5 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

6 eastward   

adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部

参考例句：

• The river here tends eastward.这条河从这里向东流。
• The crowd is heading eastward,believing that they can find gold there.人群正在向东移去，他们认为在那里可以找到黄金。

7 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 prospective   

adj.预期的，未来的，前瞻性的

参考例句：

• The story should act as a warning to other prospective buyers.这篇报道应该对其他潜在的购买者起到警示作用。
• They have all these great activities for prospective freshmen.这会举办各种各样的活动来招待未来的新人。

10 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。

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 advancement   

n.前进，促进，提升

参考例句：

• His new contribution to the advancement of physiology was well appreciated.他对生理学发展的新贡献获得高度赞赏。
• The aim of a university should be the advancement of learning.大学的目标应是促进学术。

13 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。