VOA慢速英语2021--拜登就乌克兰问题向普京发出警告

Biden Warns Putin of Sanctions Over Growing Tension in Ukraine

American President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir met over video link Tuesday, discussing Ukraine and other issues during their talk.

Russian television showed Biden at the White House and Putin at his home in Sochi as the meeting opened. Biden told Putin he hoped their next meeting would be in person.

The two men spoke¹ for two hours.

White House officials say Biden told Putin that the United States and its allies are concerned that Russia will invade Ukraine. The officials say the American leader also warned of "strong economic and other measures" as punishment should Moscow start a military conflict.

Biden expressed continued U.S. support for Ukraine's independence and territorial² control, the White House reported. And, it said, he called for a decrease in aggression³ and an increase in diplomacy⁴.

Both sides say they hope the two leaders can hold an in-person meeting to discuss ties between the two nations. The U.S. and Russia have long disputed several issues including the war in Syria, American economic restrictions⁵ and reported Russian cyber attacks on U.S. companies.

The Russian government issued a brief statement after the call.

"Talks between Vladimir Putin and President of the United States Joseph Biden took place via videoconference," it said.

U.S. officials said before the video conference that Biden would tell Putin that Russia and its banks could be hit with the strongest sanctions yet if it attacks Ukraine.

One source said such measures could target Russia's biggest banks and Moscow's ability to convert rubles into dollars and other monies. The threat is hoped to dissuade⁶ Putin from attacking Ukraine with the tens of thousands of Russian troops on its border.

Before the meeting, Putin's spokesman said, "We're looking for good, predictable relations with the United States. Russia has never intended to attack anyone, but we have our concerns...."

Russia has long objected to American and allied⁷ military aid to Ukraine. It also has demanded that Ukraine not be admitted as a member of NATO.

In a statement released just hours before the leaders' video call, Ukrainian officials accused Russia of sending tanks and soldiers into eastern Ukraine. The statement said Russia was trying to incite⁸ a gun battle.

Russia has not commented on the accusation⁹.

The roots of the conflict

Ukraine was ruled by surrounding countries including Poland, Lithuania, and others through the early part of its history. It became part of the Russian empire and then the Soviet¹⁰ Union for many years. The country won independence in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union.

In 2014, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych rejected an agreement with the European Union in favor of closer ties with Russia. The decision brought mass protests leading to his ouster. Russia reacted by taking over Crimea and supporting separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine.

Ukraine and Western allies accused Russia of sending its troops and weapons to back the rebels. Russia denied the accusation and said Russians who joined the separatists were volunteers. More than 14,000 people have died in the fighting.

A 2015 peace agreement helped end major battles. But efforts to reach a political settlement have failed. And clashes have continued at times along the line of contact.

The latest Russian military buildup

U.S. intelligence officials last week said that Russia is planning to deploy¹¹ an estimated 175,000 troops. They said almost half of them are already stationed near Ukraine's border in preparation for a possible invasion that could begin as soon as early 2022.

Ukraine's defense¹² minister told lawmakers last Friday that the number of Russian troops near Ukraine and in Russian-occupied Crimea is estimated at 94,300. He warned that a "large-scale escalation¹³" is possible in January.

The Ukrainian military says that Russia already has about 2,100 soldiers in the rebel-controlled eastern area. And the Russians also act as commanding officers in the separatist forces.

Russia has repeatedly denied the presence of its troops in eastern Ukraine. It also says that troop deployment¹⁴ on its territory should not concern anyone.

What does Russia want?

Russia has accused Ukraine of failing to honor the 2015 peace deal that was supported by France and Germany. The agreement requires Ukraine to give autonomy to the separatist-controlled areas and offer amnesty to the rebels.

Russia has strongly criticized the U.S. and its NATO allies for providing Ukraine with weapons and holding joint¹⁵ military exercises. It says the moves encourage Ukrainians to try to regain¹⁶ the rebel-held areas by force.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly described Russians and Ukrainians as "one people." He also claims that Ukraine has unfairly received historic Russian lands during Soviet times.

Putin has opposed Ukraine's desire to join NATO and expressed concern about plans by some NATO members to set up military training centers in the country. He charged that "the threats were mounting on our western border," with NATO placing its military operations closer to Russia. He offered to talk about the issue, adding that Russia would need "legal guarantees."

Is the threat of invasion real?

Russia says talk of a Russian invasion is a rebel attempt to hide Ukrainian intention for an attack in the rebel-controlled area. Ukraine denies such a plan.

Some observers see the troop buildup as a demonstration¹⁷ by Putin to persuade Western nations to stop sending troops and weapons to Ukraine.

Last month, Putin noted¹⁸ that Russian warnings finally have caused a "certain stress" in the West. He added: "It's necessary to keep them in that condition for as long as possible so that it doesn't occur to them to stage some conflict on our western borders that we don't need."

Words in This Story

decrease - n. the act of becoming smaller

cyber - adj. relating to computers

sanction - n. an action taken to force a country to obey international laws by limiting economic activity

intend - v. to plan or want to do something

empire - n. a group of countries that are controlled by one ruler or government

autonomy - n. the power to govern itself

amnesty - n. a decision that a group of people will not be punished

1 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。

2 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

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 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 dissuade   

v.劝阻，阻止

参考例句：

• You'd better dissuade him from doing that.你最好劝阻他别那样干。
• I tried to dissuade her from investing her money in stocks and shares.我曾设法劝她不要投资于股票交易。

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 incite   

v.引起，激动，煽动

参考例句：

• I wanted to point out he was a very good speaker, and could incite a crowd.我想说明他曾是一个非常出色的演讲家，非常会调动群众的情绪。
• Just a few words will incite him into action.他只需几句话一将，就会干。

9 accusation   

n.控告，指责，谴责

参考例句：

• I was furious at his making such an accusation.我对他的这种责备非常气愤。
• She knew that no one would believe her accusation.她知道没人会相信她的指控。

10 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

11 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

12 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。

13 escalation   

n.扩大，增加

参考例句：

• The threat of nuclear escalation remains. 核升级的威胁仍旧存在。 来自辞典例句
• 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。 来自辞典例句

14 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

15 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

16 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

17 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

18 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。