美国国家公共电台 NPR--NATO will boost military defenses especially on the eastern flank nearest Russia

NATO will boost military defenses especially on the eastern flank nearest Russia

Transcript¹

NPR's A Martinez talks to retired² Navy Adm. James Stavridis, a former NATO commander, about measures the security organization can adopt to better defend itself against Russian aggression³.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Leaders from the U.S., Canada, Turkey and Europe are set to approve this week at a summit in Madrid what could be the biggest overhaul⁴ of NATO's defenses since the Cold War. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says the military alliance plans to grow its quick response force from 40,000 to more than 300,000 troops. This move aims to address threats from Russia and other regional security issues. I spoke⁵ earlier with retired Admiral James Stavridis, who served as NATO's supreme⁶ allied⁷ commander from 2009 to 2013, and I started by asking what this major increase will look like.

JAMES STAVRIDIS: This would include sailors in ships, airmen in aircraft, cyber expertise⁸, every realm of military activity to include special forces, unmanned vehicles. All of that is encompassed⁹. So when you hear that top-line number go from 40,000 to 300,000, you have to recognize that all that equipment, all that hardware - the ships, the aircraft, the drones - all comes with it. So the short answer is you can do about seven times more than you can with only 40,000.

MART?NEZ: And it sounds, Admiral, that you would have a lot more flexibility¹⁰...

STAVRIDIS: Yeah.

MART?NEZ: ...And the ability to expand on ideas and plans that you might not have been able to before.

STAVRIDIS: Indeed. And all of this is categorized in a defensive¹¹ way militarily. What we don't want to do is somehow give the sense that NATO is getting ready to go on the offensive. That's not the case. The war plans are very specific.

MART?NEZ: Now, currently, where are the rapid reaction forces based? And what kinds of scenarios¹² have they been trained to react to?

STAVRIDIS: Generally speaking, these forces will still be assigned for bivouac, for staying in their forts and in their garrisons¹³ in the nation that is providing them. What is changing is the nation that is going to provide them has to provide the capability¹⁴ to move them rapidly forward. So this is not suddenly 260,000 new troops along the NATO-Russia border; this is more about troops in existing places that are capable of flowing forward. Some will be moved forward into the Baltics, Poland, Romania, but the bulk of these troops will be on standby, like our 82nd Airborne is here in the United States, to mount up on aircraft, fly into an area and engage in combat.

MART?NEZ: Admiral, I was in Ukraine when Russia was holding exercises in Belarus right before they invaded Ukraine, and I remember how tense that made things for people in Kyiv. If these forces have to conduct exercises in the home defenses, in the places where they're going to be stationed at, how much could that possibly agitate¹⁵ Russia?

STAVRIDIS: Certainly, Russia will take notice of it. But I would put it this way, A - one person's agitation¹⁶ is another person's deterrence¹⁸. The fact that 260,000 troops are exercising, are operating, are highly skilled, highly trained, the idea is not to agitate Russia but to deter¹⁷ Russia. And I think it will do that.

MART?NEZ: Finland and Sweden are also going to participate in the summit, and they have remained, officially, nonmilitary partners to NATO. How might their presence affect the alliance and its response to Russia?

STAVRIDIS: It will complicate¹⁹ things for Russia. Bringing them into the alliance creates, if you will, a whole new flank of NATO that runs to the north. It also opens the Arctic. And the military capability of the Swedes and the Finns, I can assure you, is remarkable²⁰. They deployed²¹ troops to Afghanistan. They operated in the war in Libya. They have had troops in the Balkans. We know them well in NATO. We've worked with them for decades. They will be most welcome and will be nothing but a plus for the alliance militarily.

MART?NEZ: I'm wondering, Admiral, the eastern part of Ukraine - what can Ukraine do at this point to try and get some footing there?

STAVRIDIS: Exactly what they're doing, which is take the military capability that we are placing in the hands of the Ukrainians and fight like hell. And this is their nation. They are going to have to carry this fight. Our job is to give them the tools so that if and when they decide they want to negotiate, they can be in the best position to negotiate.

MART?NEZ: Admiral, does it almost seem inevitable²² at this point that Ukraine will lose territory to Russia in this war?

STAVRIDIS: I think in war, nothing is inevitable. War is the most unpredictable of human activities. It's too soon to say that. However, if you look at the way Russia has dug in, consolidated²³ its forces, it has become a very tough nut to crack militarily in that southeastern strip that they hold today.

MART?NEZ: Former supreme allied commander of NATO, Admiral James Stavridis. Thank you very much for your time.

STAVRIDIS: Thanks, A.

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 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

3 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

4 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

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 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

7 allied   

adj.协约国的；同盟国的

参考例句：

• Britain was allied with the United States many times in history.历史上英国曾多次与美国结盟。
• Allied forces sustained heavy losses in the first few weeks of the campaign.同盟国在最初几周内遭受了巨大的损失。

8 expertise   

n.专门知识(或技能等)，专长

参考例句：

• We were amazed at his expertise on the ski slopes.他斜坡滑雪的技能使我们赞叹不已。
• You really have the technical expertise in a new breakthrough.让你真正在专业技术上有一个全新的突破。

9 encompassed   

v.围绕( encompass的过去式和过去分词 )；包围；包含；包括

参考例句：

• The enemy encompassed the city. 敌人包围了城市。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I have encompassed him with every protection. 我已经把他保护得严严实实。 来自英汉文学 - 双城记

10 flexibility   

n.柔韧性，弹性，（光的）折射性，灵活性

参考例句：

• Her great strength lies in her flexibility.她的优势在于她灵活变通。
• The flexibility of a man's muscles will lessen as he becomes old.人老了肌肉的柔韧性将降低。

11 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

12 scenarios   

n.[意]情节；剧本；事态；脚本

参考例句：

• Further, graphite cores may be safer than non-graphite cores under some accident scenarios. 再者，根据一些事故解说，石墨堆芯可比非石墨堆芯更安全一些。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Again, scenarios should make it clear which modes are acceptable to users in various contexts. 同样，我们可以运用场景剧本来搞清楚在不同情境下哪些模式可被用户接受。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

13 garrisons   

守备部队，卫戍部队( garrison的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• I've often seen pictures of such animals at the garrisons. 在要塞里，我经常看到这种动物的画片。
• Use a Black Hand to garrisons, and take it for yourself. 用黑手清空驻守得步兵，为自己占一个。

14 capability   

n.能力；才能；(pl)可发展的能力或特性等

参考例句：

• She has the capability to become a very fine actress.她有潜力成为杰出演员。
• Organizing a whole department is beyond his capability.组织整个部门是他能力以外的事。

15 agitate   

vi.(for,against)煽动，鼓动；vt.搅动

参考例句：

• They sent agents to agitate the local people.他们派遣情报人员煽动当地的民众。
• All you need to do is gently agitate the water with a finger or paintbrush.你只需要用手指或刷子轻轻地搅动水。

16 agitation   

n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动

参考例句：

• Small shopkeepers carried on a long agitation against the big department stores.小店主们长期以来一直在煽动人们反对大型百货商店。
• These materials require constant agitation to keep them in suspension.这些药剂要经常搅动以保持悬浮状态。

17 deter   

vt.阻止，使不敢，吓住

参考例句：

• Failure did not deter us from trying it again.失败并没有能阻挡我们再次进行试验。
• Dogs can deter unwelcome intruders.狗能够阻拦不受欢迎的闯入者。

18 deterrence   

威慑，制止； 制止物，制止因素； 挽留的事物； 核威慑

参考例句：

• An extreme school of "disarmers" pronounced stable deterrence was a dangerous deception. “裁军论者”中的极端派声称，稳定的威摄是一种危险的骗局。
• Escalation is thus an aspect of deterrence and of crisis management. 因此逐步升级是威慑和危机处理的一个方面。

19 complicate   

vt.使复杂化，使混乱，使难懂

参考例句：

• There is no need to complicate matters.没有必要使问题复杂化。
• These events will greatly complicate the situation.这些事件将使局势变得极其复杂。

20 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

21 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

22 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

23 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。