美国国家公共电台 NPR--Ukrainian grain is arriving in East Africa for the first time since Russia invaded

Ukrainian grain is arriving in East Africa for the first time since Russia invaded

Transcript¹

NPR speaks with U.S. Special Envoy² for Food Security Cary Fowler about the first shipments of Ukrainian grain to arrive in East Africa since Russia invaded Ukraine.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

A ship full of Ukrainian grain arrived at the Horn of Africa this week, the first such delivery since Russia invaded Ukraine in February. Russia, you may recall, blocked the shipments from Black Sea ports until a negotiation³ over the summer. Aid organizations say tens of millions of people are facing extreme hunger in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia. They are dependent on grain imported from Ukraine and also from Russia. Cary Fowler is the U.S. special envoy for global food security and is on the line. Welcome.

CARY FOWLER: Thank you.

INSKEEP: How important is resuming these shipments?

FOWLER: Well, it's terribly important. Ukraine is one of the Top 5 exporters of grain, of wheat, barley⁴, corn, sunflower oil, sunflower seed. And much of that grain has traditionally gone to northern Africa and Middle Eastern countries, where, for a number of those individual countries, it supplies perhaps 80% of what they have.

INSKEEP: Wow.

FOWLER: So getting the grain out is terribly important.

INSKEEP: Nevertheless, it seems that this is just one of the various aspects of the crisis in that part of the region. This is not going to be very much grain compared to the need for it.

FOWLER: That's right. This is really a unique food crisis in historical terms. We've recently been talking about it as the three Cs, as climate, COVID and conflict being major causes behind this particular food crisis. But we also have low grain stockpiles by historic measures. And this is - all these things contribute to the kind of situation we have now. So we're looking at a food crisis that is not going to go away this year. It's multi-causal. And we're going to have to deal with each one of those major causes.

INSKEEP: Let me ask you about one of those Cs, conflict. There is, of course, a civil war in Ethiopia. The Tigray region has been isolated⁵ from the outside world. Is there any way to even get food into that region?

FOWLER: Well, that's a challenge that World Food Programme is going to have to face. And they faced it before. As you know, this wonderful and aptly named ship, Brave Commander, is headed towards that area where the food that it's carrying will provide relief for people in Ethiopia and Somalia. It's 23,000 metric tons of grain. And I know that's hard for people to get their heads around. But think of it this way. It'll produce more than 60 million loaves of bread. And that's just one ship coming out of Ukraine carrying 23,000 metric tons. What Russia with its invasion and blockade has done has essentially⁶ sealed up 20 million metric tons of grain in Ukraine that can't get out to the people who really need it.

INSKEEP: Is it clear to you that the agreement negotiated over the summer will allow much or all of that to get out in the months ahead?

FOWLER: It certainly should. The U.S. has been working tirelessly to make sure that alternative routes - these are overland routes - are available. And those will still be used. But historically, almost all of the grain has gone out through the ports. It's much more efficient. It's cheaper that way. It can get to hungry people faster. And farmers make more money because the transportation costs are less. So we'll continue to explore those alternative overland routes just in case. But we certainly hope that the deal that was brokered⁷ to allow the grain out of the ports in the Black Sea holds.

INSKEEP: Let me circle back to East Africa and another of your Cs, climate. People who followed the news over the last several decades know that there have been cycles of drought and cycles of famine in East Africa over the decades. How, if at all, is climate change making that worse?

FOWLER: It's making it much worse. Of course, for farmers, it manifests itself as, simply, really, really bad weather. We've had four years of extreme drought in the Horn of Africa. That set a record. And now we're headed towards a fifth year. And if you look globally, last month was the 451st consecutive⁸ month in which global average temperatures for that month, July in this case, exceeded the 20th century average. So we've had 451 consecutive months of, quote, "above average temperature." And that's affecting crops and crop yields all over the world.

INSKEEP: Mr. Fowler, thank you so much.

FOWLER: Sure. Thank you.

INSKEEP: Cary Fowler is the U.S. special envoy for global food security.

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 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

3 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

4 barley   

n.大麦，大麦粒

参考例句：

• They looked out across the fields of waving barley.他们朝田里望去,只见大麦随风摇摆。
• He cropped several acres with barley.他种了几英亩大麦。

5 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。

6 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

7 brokered   

adj.由权力经纪人安排（或控制）的v.做掮客（或中人等）( broker的过去式和过去分词 )；作为权力经纪人进行谈判；以中间人等身份安排…

参考例句：

• a peace plan brokered by the UN 由联合国出面协商的和平计划
• Your husband brokered the deal to go in, transfrer the assets and get our man out. 你丈夫后来插了一脚，把生意都抢了过去，我们的人也被挤了出来。 来自电影对白

8 consecutive   

adj.连续的，联贯的，始终一贯的

参考例句：

• It has rained for four consecutive days.已连续下了四天雨。
• The policy of our Party is consecutive.我党的政策始终如一。