美国国家公共电台 NPR--Russian forces have captured nearly all of Sievierodonetsk

Russian forces have captured nearly all of Sievierodonetsk

Transcript¹

Russia appears on the cusp of capturing Sievierodonetsk — a key Ukrainian city in the eastern part of the country. It's a city that's been at the center of the fighting for weeks.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Russia has captured nearly all of an eastern Ukrainian city.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The Russian army is making a destructive advance, even if it's slow. Last week, U.S. General Mark Milley told NPR that Russia has superior firepower, but they're facing resistance.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED NPR BROADCAST)

MARK MILLEY: They're gaining ground in very short increments², day to day - 500 meters, 1,000 meters, 2 kilometers. Then they get pushed back, and it's two steps forward, one step back.

FADEL: Now the gains are adding up, and nearly all of the Ukrainian city is under their control.

INSKEEP: NPR's Greg Myre is following this from Kyiv. Hey there, Greg.

GREG MYRE, BYLINE³: Hi, Steve.

INSKEEP: How much is left to the Ukrainians of Severodonetsk?

MYRE: Well, they really only have one part of the city. They're holding the Azot chemical plant, a big chemical plant in the city. About 500 or so civilians⁴ are also holed up with these remaining Ukrainian fighters. The Russians have been hammering this city relentlessly⁵ for weeks, slowly advancing. And now they've basically got the Ukrainians down to this plant. The region's governor says Russia is also pressing an offensive in surrounding regions. This is the center of the Donbas region and really the focus of the Russian operations.

INSKEEP: When you talk about a chemical plant as the place for the last stand, this is reminding me of the story of Mariupol, where something quite similar happened, right?

MYRE: Oh, absolutely - very similar in many ways, yes.

INSKEEP: So what would be the significance if Russia takes full control?

MYRE: Well, I think there's really a key takeaway for each side. For the Russians, it again shows that in these head-to-head battles, they have overwhelming firepower and can grind down the Ukrainian forces. So we should expect Russia to continue with this approach. Severodonetsk is on the east bank of a river. Right on the West Bank is another city, Lysychansk, that's already come under heavy shelling. So this is the most likely Russian target coming up, and it's part of this broader aim to take over all of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine.

INSKEEP: What does it mean for the Ukrainians that Russia is gaining but so slowly?

MYRE: Well, the Ukrainians are again showing that they play very tenacious⁶ defense⁷. They've defended this relatively⁸ small city, which had about 100,000 residents, for almost two months against a very concentrated Russian force. Some military analysts⁹ wondered why Ukraine just doesn't retreat. But Ukraine's approach has been to defend as long and as hard as possible, make the Russians pay a very heavy price in men and weapons. Then the hope is that Russia will deplete¹⁰ itself while making these relatively limited gains. We're about four months into the war now, and this trend is very clear. Russia has made advances, but very slowly and at a very high cost.

INSKEEP: One other thing to ask you about - isn't the European Union getting close to offering Ukraine candidate status, getting them into the EU?

MYRE: Could happen this week. If they do get this offer at the end of the week, it will be the start of a very long process. Even in normal times, candidate countries have to jump through hoops¹¹ for years before becoming EU members. Decision doesn't mean you're in. It means you've got a lot of things to do, but the signs are looking pretty good. Five separate European leaders visited Kyiv last week to stand side by side with President Zelenskyy. He's calling it a very historic week.

INSKEEP: NPR's Greg Myre, thanks so much.

MYRE: My pleasure.

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 increments   

n.增长( increment的名词复数 )；增量；增额；定期的加薪

参考例句：

• These increments were mixed and looked into the 5.56mm catridge case. 将各种药粒进行混和，装在5．56毫米的弹壳中。 来自辞典例句
• The Rankine scale has scale increments equal to the FahrenheIt'scale. 兰氏温标的温度间距与华氏温标的相同。 来自辞典例句

3 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。

4 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

5 relentlessly   

adv.不屈不挠地；残酷地；不间断

参考例句：

• The African sun beat relentlessly down on his aching head. 非洲的太阳无情地照射在他那发痛的头上。
• He pursued her relentlessly, refusing to take 'no' for an answer. 他锲而不舍地追求她，拒不接受“不”的回答。

6 tenacious   

adj.顽强的，固执的，记忆力强的，粘的

参考例句：

• We must learn from the tenacious fighting spirit of Lu Xun.我们要学习鲁迅先生韧性的战斗精神。
• We should be tenacious of our rights.我们应坚决维护我们的权利。

7 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。

8 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

9 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。

10 deplete   

v.弄空，排除，减轻，减少...体液，放去...的血

参考例句：

• Most native mammal species have been severely depleted.大多数本地哺乳动物的数量都已经大大减少了。
• Elastic collisions deplete very little of the electron's energy.弹性碰撞中电子减少的能量非常少。

11 hoops   

n.箍( hoop的名词复数 )；（篮球）篮圈；（旧时儿童玩的）大环子；（两端埋在地里的）小铁弓

参考例句：

• a barrel bound with iron hoops 用铁箍箍紧的桶
• Hoops in Paris were wider this season and skirts were shorter. 在巴黎，这个季节的裙圈比较宽大，裙裾却短一些。 来自飘（部分）