VOA标准英语2010-Russian President Confronts Islamic Funda

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev (R) and officials observe a minute of silence for victims of this week's suicide bombings, in Mahachkala, the capital of Dagestan, a province in Russia's volatile¹ North Caucasus, 01 April 2010

President Dmitri Medvedev is in Dagestan in Russia's turbulent North Caucasus region, where another bomb blast added to a streak² of deadly explosions that began this week in the Moscow subway.  Chechen rebel Doku Umarov has claimed credit for the Moscow attack in the name of Islam.  Mr. Medvedev has countered the claim with a moral appeal to the Islamic faith and its spiritual leaders in the Caucasus.

 

President Medvedev arrived in capital city of Makhachkala as two people were killed when an explosion ripped their car apart in a Dagestani village.  The cause of the blast is being investigated, but police say the vehicle may have been transporting a makeshift bomb.  On Wednesday, several people were killed in a twin suicide bombing on Moscow Street in the town of Kizlyar.  The local police chief was among the victims.

In a meeting with local officials, Mr. Medvedev called for stepping up the war on terror.

While Islam is often associated with terrorism, Mr. Medvedev recognized the importance of the Muslim faith in the Caucasus.  He called for support of its mainstream³ spiritual leaders, saying terrorism can also be confronted through spirituality and high ethical⁴ standards.

The Kremlin leader recognizes Islam and Islamic spiritual leaders have a special place in the Caucasus.  He says he spoke⁵ last year about helping⁶ them, adding that every effort should be made to enhance their authority.

Meanwhile, Chechen Islamist rebel Doku Umarov, dressed in a military camouflage⁷ jacket in a wooded location, claimed credit for the Moscow subway bombings in an Internet video posted on Wednesday.  Umarov incants the name of Allah throughout the four-minute recording⁸.

Umarov claims the operation carried out on his orders was not directed against the poorest of Russians, but rather against residents of Moscow.  He says he will laugh at any politician, journalist or other person who condemns⁹ him for those operations or calls him a terrorist.

The head of the Caucasus department at the Russian Academy of Sciences, Sergei Arutyunov calls Umarov a false Muslim.  He told VOA Umarov fought for Chechen independence against Russia in the 1990s under the banner of nationalism.

Arutyunov says nationalism receded¹⁰ somewhat about three or four years ago.  He adds that religious fanaticism¹¹ took its place, though it existed earlier," said Arutyunov. "The difference, the scholar says, is that religious fanaticism previously¹² assisted nationalism; now it's the opposite - pseudo Islamic fundamentalism has emerged as a primary political force.

Political analyst¹³ Masha Lipman at the Moscow Carnegie Center says President Medvedev's appeal to Islamic spiritual leaders may be an attempt to contrast ordinary with radical¹⁴ Islam.

Lipman says the move is very smart, though whether it will work is another matter.  She notes, however, that the vast majority of people in the Caucasus are practicing Muslims and also Russian citizens who will continue to live in Russia, so it's important to develop normal relations with them.

Lipman says it is no secret that many Russians do not consider the Caucasus to be a part of the "real" Russia and prefer not to think about events there. 

In Dagestan, Mr. Medvedev reminded Russians that the Caucasus is not a foreign province, but an integral part of Russia.  He also urged Russians elsewhere to refer to people from the region as fellow citizens, not outsiders.

In his latest video, Doku Umarov repeats a theme woven into his previous warnings that violence in the Caucasus is not something distant and televised, but something he intends to bring into the streets and homes of Russians throughout the country.

 

1 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

2 streak   

n.条理，斑纹，倾向，少许，痕迹；v.加条纹，变成条纹，奔驰，快速移动

参考例句：

• The Indians used to streak their faces with paint.印第安人过去常用颜料在脸上涂条纹。
• Why did you streak the tree?你为什么在树上刻条纹？

3 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

4 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

5 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。

6 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

7 camouflage   

n./v.掩饰，伪装

参考例句：

• The white fur of the polar bear is a natural camouflage.北极熊身上的白色的浓密软毛是一种天然的伪装。
• The animal's markings provide effective camouflage.这种动物身上的斑纹是很有效的伪装。

8 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

9 condemns   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的第三人称单数 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• Her widowhood condemns her to a lonely old age. 守寡使她不得不过着孤独的晚年生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The public opinion condemns prostitution. 公众舆论遣责卖淫。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 receded   

v.逐渐远离( recede的过去式和过去分词 )；向后倾斜；自原处后退或避开别人的注视；尤指问题

参考例句：

• The floodwaters have now receded. 洪水现已消退。
• The sound of the truck receded into the distance. 卡车的声音渐渐在远处消失了。

11 fanaticism   

n.狂热，盲信

参考例句：

• Your fanaticism followed the girl is wrong. 你对那个女孩的狂热是错误的。
• All of Goebbels's speeches sounded the note of stereotyped fanaticism. 戈培尔的演讲，千篇一律，无非狂热二字。

12 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

13 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。

14 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。