美国国家公共电台 NPR--Russia's foreign minister to begin talks with Turkey

Russia's foreign minister to begin talks with Turkey

Transcript¹

Possible Turkish naval² escorts for grain ships coming from Ukraine and going around the world could be under discussion when Russia's foreign minister visits Turkey.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

The war in Ukraine has disrupted one of the world's great sources of grain. In normal times, Ukrainian grain is loaded onto ships in the Black Sea and goes on to many countries. But those ports have been closed since Russian warships³ joined the attack on Ukraine. This was a subject today as Russia's foreign minister met the top diplomat⁴ of neighboring Turkey, which would like the grain shipments flowing once again. NPR's Peter Kenyon has been watching what's happening from his base in Istanbul.

PETER KENYON, BYLINE⁵: Once the meeting broke up, Sergey Lavrov and Mevlut Cavusoglu came out for a news conference. The Turkish foreign minister said it's vital that all sides agree to a mechanism⁶ to get these exports moving again. And he added, if those exports are allowed to resume, then Russia should get serious consideration for its demand that Western sanctions against it be lifted. For his part, Lavrov sounded fairly diplomatic. He called on all sides to respect international treaties. He said Russia does need to have its security concerns addressed. So it basically sounds like these talks could help move things toward a diplomatic track and, possibly, a solution. Lavrov also said they are trying to minimize civilian⁷ damaging casualties. There'd be some dispute about that. But of course, we'll have to see what happens next.

INSKEEP: I'm just trying to figure out the mechanics of this. So they grow the grain in Ukraine on the planes. They get it into Black Sea ports in normal times. And doesn't it normally go right past your home there in Istanbul on the way to the Middle East and Africa and places like that?

KENYON: Well, it does. There are a lot of interesting vessels⁸ that come up and down the Bosporus strait. And those grain ships were certainly part of it, not so many recently.

INSKEEP: Yeah.

KENYON: But if these talks are successful, then hopefully that will soon resume, because this is a lot of grain for Africa and the Middle East.

INSKEEP: And then help me understand because it's Turkey that's now making this ask. And I see that Turkey is on the route. But do they have leverage⁹ somehow? Do they have anything they can offer or push on Russia to allow the grain through?

KENYON: I'm not sure it's a question of pushing and pressuring and powerful leverage. There is this convention called the Montreux Convention. And it does charge Turkey with administering the passage of vessels up and down, to and from the Black Sea. It's largely a matter of them getting advance notification. It isn't so much that Turkey can just put its foot down and say, no. But they clearly have a big interest here. They are trying to be the front edge of the diplomatic push to resolve the issue.

INSKEEP: So tell me about one other thing going on here, because we know about the Russian ships, those that haven't been sunk, which are in the Black Sea and declared these ports closed on the Ukrainian coast. But isn't there an issue of Ukrainian mines or somebody's mines in the water?

KENYON: There is very much. It's a big Russian concern that mines, particularly around Odesa, be removed and cleaned up. And that, according to a foreign policy analyst¹⁰ I spoke¹¹ with - his name is Yoruk Isik. He's based here in Istanbul. He says it sounds like a reasonable demand, but it entails¹² possibly great risk for Ukraine if it does de-mine Odesa. Here's a bit of what he said.

YORUK ISIK: So now they are telling us, of course, they should de-mine - the Ukrainians de-mine the Odesa port. Of course, there is absolutely no issues. What the world is promising¹³ to Ukraine, that Russians won't suddenly change their mind and invade the only remaining Black Sea port area that Ukraine still have.

KENYON: So he says, it may look bad now, but things could get much worse for Ukraine.

INSKEEP: Peter, thanks for the insights, really appreciate it.

KENYON: Thanks, Steve.

INSKEEP: That's NPR's Peter Kenyon in Istanbul.

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 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

3 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

4 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

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 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

7 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

8 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 leverage   

n.力量，影响；杠杆作用，杠杆的力量

参考例句：

• We'll have to use leverage to move this huge rock.我们不得不借助杠杆之力来移动这块巨石。
• He failed in the project because he could gain no leverage. 因为他没有影响力，他的计划失败了。

10 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。

11 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。

12 entails   

使…成为必要( entail的第三人称单数 )； 需要； 限定继承； 使必需

参考例句：

• The job entails a lot of hard work. 这工作需要十分艰苦的努力。
• This job entails a lot of hard work. 这项工作需要十分努力。

13 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。