美国国家公共电台 NPR--WNBA star Brittney Griner freed from Russian prison

WNBA star Brittney Griner freed from Russian prison

Transcript¹

Griner is heading home after being detained since February. Her release was part of a prisoner swap² with Russia, President Biden announced Thursday.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Brittney Griner is heading home. The WNBA star, who has been detained in Russia since February, has been released as part of a prisoner swap. The man freed from the U.S. is a notorious Russian arms dealer³. President Biden announced the news about Griner from the White House.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: She's safe. She's on a plane. She's on her way home. After months of being unjustly detained in Russia, held under intolerable circumstances, Britney will soon be back in the arms of her loved ones. And she should have been there all along.

MARTIN: With more, we are joined now by NPR White House correspondent Tamara Keith. Hi, Tam.

TAMARA KEITH, BYLINE⁵: Good morning.

MARTIN: Just describe the scene. It was quite dramatic.

KEITH: Yeah. Early this morning, Biden, Brittney Griner's wife Cherelle and others gathered in the Oval Office to call Brittney, who by then was on a plane heading home. And there were smiles all around. She was exchanged at an airport in Abu Dhabi for an arms dealer named Viktor Bout⁴, whose release has long been a priority for the Russians. And later, Biden announced her release with brief remarks in the Roosevelt Room. And then Cherelle Griner also spoke⁶.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

CHERELLE GRINER: So over the last nine months, you all have been so privy⁷ to one of the darkest moments of my life. And so today, I'm just standing⁸ here overwhelmed with emotions. But the most important emotion that I have right now is just sincere gratitude⁹ for President Biden and his entire administration.

MARTIN: Griner has been detained since February. Can you just remind us why she was arrested in the first place, how we got here?

KEITH: Yeah. Authorities at an airport in Russia found two hash oil vape cartridges¹⁰ in her luggage. She was on her way into the country to play basketball in a professional league in Russia. Ultimately, she pleaded guilty to drug charges in hopes of receiving a lenient¹¹ sentence, saying that she had never intended to break the law and that she had been prescribed the drugs by her doctor to deal with pain. Instead, she was sentenced to nine years in prison. And last month, she was moved to a penal¹² colony. This whole time, U.S. officials have said that she was wrongfully detained and should be freed. On July 4, she sent a handwritten letter to the president, pleading with him not to forget about her and other wrongfully detained Americans. And in recent months, there have been intense efforts to get both her and another American, Paul Whelan, released.

MARTIN: But Paul Whelan has not been released, right?

KEITH: Yeah, he has not. And it's not exactly clear what happened with him because he's been part of the conversation all along. Here's what President Biden said.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

BIDEN: This was not a choice of which American to bring home. We brought home Trevor Reed when we had a chance earlier this year. Sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul's case differently than Brittney's. And while we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul's release, we are not giving up. We will never give up.

KEITH: Whelan is 52 years old. He's serving a 16-year sentence for espionage¹³ at a different Russian penal colony. There are concerns about his health. And the U.S. says that these charges are totally manufactured.

MARTIN: So what did the U.S. agree to secure their release?

KEITH: So the possibility of this prisoner swap was first made public in July. But Russia took a long time to respond to what the U.S. had been describing as a substantial offer. What we know about Viktor Bout is that he is a notorious arms dealer who spent more than a decade in federal prison in Marion, Ill., as part of a 25-year sentence in prison for conspiring¹⁴ to kill Americans and providing aid to terrorists.

MARTIN: Politically, what does this mean for President Biden's victory?

KEITH: Yeah, getting Griner home is a win, no question. Bringing home Americans wrongfully detained in other countries is something that Presidents Obama and Trump¹⁵ also prioritized when they were in the office. It's the sort of thing that is celebrated¹⁶ widely. But often, these stories prove to be more complicated over time as people examine what the U.S. had to give up to secure their release - or in this case, with Whelan still imprisoned¹⁷ despite efforts to have him freed along with Griner.

MARTIN: NPR White House correspondent Tamara Keith. Tamara, thank you.

KEITH: You're welcome.

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 swap   

n.交换；vt.交换，用...作交易

参考例句：

• I will swap you my bicycle for your radio.我想拿我的自行车换你的收音机。
• This comic was a swap that I got from Nick.这本漫画书是我从尼克那里换来的。

3 dealer   

n.商人，贩子

参考例句：

• The dealer spent hours bargaining for the painting.那个商人为购买那幅画花了几个小时讨价还价。
• The dealer reduced the price for cash down.这家商店对付现金的人减价优惠。

4 bout   

n.侵袭，发作；一次(阵，回)；拳击等比赛

参考例句：

• I was suffering with a bout of nerves.我感到一阵紧张。
• That bout of pneumonia enfeebled her.那次肺炎的发作使她虚弱了。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 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。

7 privy   

adj.私用的；隐密的

参考例句：

• Only three people,including a policeman,will be privy to the facts.只会允许3个人，其中包括一名警察，了解这些内情。
• Very few of them were privy to the details of the conspiracy.他们中很少有人知道这一阴谋的详情。

8 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

9 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。

10 cartridges   

子弹( cartridge的名词复数 )； （打印机的）墨盒； 录音带盒； （唱机的）唱头

参考例句：

• computer consumables such as disks and printer cartridges 如磁盘、打印机墨盒之类的电脑耗材
• My new video game player came with three game cartridges included. 我的新电子游戏机附有三盘游戏带。

11 lenient   

adj.宽大的，仁慈的

参考例句：

• The judge was lenient with him.法官对他很宽大。
• It's a question of finding the means between too lenient treatment and too severe punishment.问题是要找出处理过宽和处罚过严的折中办法。

12 penal   

adj.刑罚的；刑法上的

参考例句：

• I hope you're familiar with penal code.我希望你们熟悉本州法律规则。
• He underwent nineteen years of penal servitude for theft.他因犯了大窃案受过十九年的苦刑。

13 espionage   

n.间谍行为，谍报活动

参考例句：

• The authorities have arrested several people suspected of espionage.官方已经逮捕了几个涉嫌从事间谍活动的人。
• Neither was there any hint of espionage in Hanley's early life.汉利的早期生活也毫无进行间谍活动的迹象。

14 conspiring   

密谋( conspire的现在分词 )； 搞阴谋； （事件等）巧合； 共同导致

参考例句：

• They were accused of conspiring against the king. 他们被指控阴谋反对国王。
• John Brown and his associates were tried for conspiring to overthrow the slave states. 约翰·布朗和他的合伙者们由于密谋推翻实行奴隶制度的美国各州而被审讯。

15 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

16 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

17 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。