美国国家公共电台 NPR--The United States Embassy in Cuba has reopened visa and consular services

The United States Embassy in Cuba has reopened visa and consular¹ services

Transcript²

For the first time since 2017, the U.S. Embassy in Cuba has resumed full consular and visa services in Havana. The U.S. says the reopening is to ensure the safe and legal migration³ of Cubans.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

The U.S. Embassy in Cuba has resumed full consular and visa services in Havana for the first time since 2017.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

The U.S. says the reopening is to ensure the safe and legal migration of Cubans. It comes during a mass exodus⁴ from the island.

MART?NEZ: NPR's Eyder Peralta joins us now from his base in Mexico City. Eyder, let's start with the basics. Why was the embassy closed, and what does this reopening mean?

EYDER PERALTA, BYLINE⁵: Yeah. So there was a huge drawdown of staff in 2017, and that happened after the U.S. accused Cuba of these so-called sonic attacks on American diplomats⁶. And what actually happened remains⁷ a mystery. But now the embassy says it is staffed, and it is ready to process all immigrant visas. And when there was this skeletal staff, if you were Cuban looking for a visa, you had to fly to Guyana. Now Cubans can process their visas in Havana. But as you noted⁸, this comes at an extraordinary time for Cuba. Last year, about 250,000 Cubans left the island. But the Biden administration says it wants to issue about 20,000 visas this year. So there very well might be a huge mismatch between the Cubans who want to leave and the visas that are available.

MART?NEZ: Yeah, and those sonic attacks were dubbed⁹ the Havana syndrome¹⁰, very mysterious term there. So, OK, what does this reopening mean then? It doesn't seem like much is going to change.

PERALTA: I mean, I think it's likely that this won't lead to dramatic changes because Cuba is just in the middle of a huge economic crisis, which is a long time in the making. I mean, first, the help it was getting from Venezuela collapsed¹¹. Then the Trump¹² administration hit it with new sanctions. Then it got hit by COVID and hurricanes and a huge fire on its main power plants. So Cubans are having a hard time getting the basics, everything from food to fuel. And this is the worst crisis Cuba has faced since the end of the Cold War.

And it's hard to overstate how many Cubans are looking to leave. By some estimates, Cuba lost 2% of its population last year. U.S. Border Patrol says they've seen a 400% increase in migrants in the Florida sector¹³ since October. And, of course, we see it here in Mexico. Lots of Cuban migrants make it to Central America, and they walk north. It's worth noting that President Biden will deliver a speech about immigration today, and he will be here in Mexico next week. And certainly he and his Mexican counterpart will be talking immigration.

MART?NEZ: And Eyder, what's the Cuban government saying about this?

PERALTA: I mean, like they've done in the past, they're blaming the U.S. embargo¹⁴ for the troubles. But President Miguel Diaz-Canel actually gave a realistic assessment¹⁵ in his New Year's speech. He called 2022 one of the worst two years in decades, and he warned that 2023 could be worse. Let's listen.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT MIGUEL DIAZ-CANEL: (Speaking Spanish).

PERALTA: He called on Cubans to work with passion to continue defying the impossible. He said that he welcomes hope this new year. So clearly, there are no easy answers in Cuba at the moment.

MART?NEZ: All right. NPR's Eyder Peralta from Mexico City. Eyder, thanks a lot.

PERALTA: Thank you, A.

1 consular   

a.领事的

参考例句：

• He has rounded out twenty years in the consular service. 他在领事馆工作已整整20年了。
• Consular invoices are declarations made at the consulate of the importing country. 领事发票是进口国领事馆签发的一种申报书。

2 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。

3 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

4 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。

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 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 syndrome   

n.综合病症；并存特性

参考例句：

• The Institute says that an unidentified virus is to blame for the syndrome. 该研究所表示,引起这种综合症的是一种尚未确认的病毒。
• Results indicated that 11 fetuses had Down syndrome. 结果表明有11个胎儿患有唐氏综合征。

11 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

12 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。

13 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

14 embargo   

n.禁运（令）；vt.对...实行禁运，禁止（通商）

参考例句：

• This country put an oil embargo on an enemy country.该国对敌国实行石油禁运。
• During the war,they laid an embargo on commerce with enemy countries.在战争期间，他们禁止与敌国通商。

15 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？