美国国家公共电台 NPR--Venezuelans could soon receive some relief amid a long political crisis

Venezuelans could soon receive some relief amid a long political crisis

Transcript¹

NPR's A Martinez talks to Jason Marczak of the Atlantic Council about the Biden administration easing some sanctions on Venezuela, as talks are resuming between the government and opposition².

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

The people of Venezuela could soon receive some relief amid a long political crisis. The government of embattled President Nicolas Maduro and its opposition over the weekend agreed to establish a U.N.-managed humanitarian³ fund. As much as $3 billion in frozen Venezuelan assets could go toward medicine, food and other aid for the country's citizens. Now, in response, the U.S. eased some oil sanctions on the country. It is a significant development four years after a widely disputed election in which Maduro declared himself the winner. For more on this, we turn to Jason Marczak. He's the senior director of the Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center. All right. First, get us up to speed. Why were these talks taking place to begin with?

JASON MARCZAK: Well, these talks are taking place right now because of the fact that Nicolas Maduro has decided⁴ to return to the negotiating table a year after he left the negotiating table. These negotiations⁵ in Mexico City originally were set to take place last year. When the U.S. extradited one of Maduro's close associates, Alex Saab, for money laundering⁶, Nicolas Maduro pulled out of the negotiations. The negotiations that started this weekend in Mexico City are actually the result of months of secret talks in Caracas to be able to reestablish these negotiations, which included the announcement this weekend not just of the negotiations but, as mentioned, the humanitarian agreement that would be administered by the United Nations.

MART?NEZ: When it comes to the sanctions the Biden administration is lifting, some of the oil sanctions on Venezuela, does that mean that years of their sanctions have not worked?

MARCZAK: Well, what it means is that the sanctions are meant to force change in a particular government or entity⁷. And these sanctions, the oil sanctions in particular, the Chevron⁸ sanctions, have been meant to force action on the part of Maduro. The lifting of the sanctions of the oil - limited oil sanction lifting this past weekend will allow for Chevron to begin to export oil only into the United States. It does not authorize⁹ the payment of any taxes or royalties¹⁰ to the government of Venezuela itself.

But what it also shows is that sanctions - it shows Maduro that sanctions can be lifted if he takes the right actions to be able to alleviate¹¹ the suffering of the Venezuelan people. Now, of course, there's many other sanctions that remain in place. There's five other categories and multiple sanctions that date back to 2006. So the hope is that by lifting these initial sanctions, it'll show Maduro that there can be a light at the end of the tunnel. And it'll force additional action from Maduro that helps with the Venezuelan people's suffering. But at the same point, these sanctions can also be immediately snapped back at any point if Maduro does not comply with the terms that were outlined this past weekend.

MART?NEZ: So aside, Jason, from going back to the negotiating table, what other actions does Maduro have to do?

MARCZAK: Well, the negotiating table has to produce results. And that is absolutely key because Maduro has historically used negotiations to stall without any intention of agreement. I'm hopeful that this time might be different. What is looked for at this point is looking to the 2024 elections. These are going to be incredibly consequential¹² presidential elections. And one of the key aspects of the negotiations is to get Maduro to agree to the basic tenets of a free and fair election so that the opposition parties actually have a chance of being able to compete fairly in that election.

MART?NEZ: So we're talking 100% transparency, openly monitored. That's what is the goal for 2024?

MARCZAK: Yes. And not just transparency, but also allowing political parties and politicians and civil society and others to actually participate in the electoral process. Problem is, most of the opposition politicians have fled the country in the last few years, along with the 7 million other Venezuelans, because if they stay in the country, they risk being locked up in jail, isolated¹³ from their loved ones for years. And so it's not just about the transparency of the elections, but it's actually about leading up to the elections and providing the conditions for the opposition to actually be able to participate.

MART?NEZ: Maduro's word hasn't been one where anyone could really trust it, Jason. So what would change? What makes the Biden administration think that that could change this time around?

MARCZAK: Well, what's absolutely fundamental is not just Maduro's word. What's actually fundamental is verifiable implementation¹⁴ of any agreement that is made at the negotiations in Mexico City.

MART?NEZ: By verifiable, what does that mean?

MARCZAK: It means that there is independent commissions that are helping¹⁵...

MART?NEZ: OK.

MARCZAK: ...To ensure that anything that is agreed - whether it's the humanitarian funding, ensuring that the money that was administered by the United Nations is able to actually reach the Venezuelan people, or that any agreement with regard to the elections is actually monitored by independent monitoring bodies and independent election observation.

MART?NEZ: That's Jason Marczak, senior director of the Atlantic Council's Adrienne Arsht Latin America Center. Jason, thanks.

MARCZAK: Thank you.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

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 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

6 laundering   

n.洗涤（衣等），洗烫（衣等）；洗（钱）v.洗（衣服等），洗烫（衣服等）( launder的现在分词 )；洗（黑钱）（把非法收入改头换面，变为貌似合法的收入）

参考例句：

• Separate the white clothes from the dark clothes before laundering. 洗衣前应当把浅色衣服和深色衣服分开。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He was charged with laundering money. 他被指控洗钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 entity   

n.实体，独立存在体，实际存在物

参考例句：

• The country is no longer one political entity.这个国家不再是一个统一的政治实体了。
• As a separate legal entity,the corporation must pay taxes.作为一个独立的法律实体，公司必须纳税。

8 chevron   

n.V形臂章；V形图案

参考例句：

• He wore shoulderstrap rank slides with sergeant's chevrons.他佩戴标示级别的肩章，上面有中士的V形标志。
• The chevron or arrow road sign indicates a sharp bend to the left or right.V形或箭头路标表示有向左或向右的急转弯。

9 authorize   

v.授权，委任；批准，认可

参考例句：

• He said that he needed to get his supervisor to authorize my refund.他说必须让主管人员批准我的退款。
• Only the President could authorize the use of the atomic bomb.只有总统才能授权使用原子弹。

10 royalties   

特许权使用费

参考例句：

• I lived on about £3,000 a year from the royalties on my book. 我靠着写书得来的每年约3，000英镑的版税生活。 来自辞典例句
• Payments shall generally be made in the form of royalties. 一般应采取提成方式支付。 来自经济法规部分

11 alleviate   

v.减轻，缓和，缓解(痛苦等)

参考例句：

• The doctor gave her an injection to alleviate the pain.医生给她注射以减轻疼痛。
• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。

12 consequential   

adj.作为结果的，间接的；重要的

参考例句：

• She was injured and suffered a consequential loss of earnings.她受了伤因而收入受损。
• This new transformation is at least as consequential as that one was.这一新的转变至少和那次一样重要。

13 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

14 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。

15 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。