VOA新闻杂志--争夺乌克兰马里乌波尔港的斗争仍在继续

Fight for Ukraine’s Port of Mariupol Goes On

The Ukrainian port of Mariupol continues to resist Russia's military attacks, more than six weeks after Russian forces invaded the country.

The normally busy eastern city on the Sea of Azov is home to 450,000 Ukrainians. Most have fled to escape Russia's offensive. Mariupol's Mayor Vadym Boychenko said that an estimated 120,000 Ukrainians remain.

Ukraine's strong resistance has interfered¹ with Russia's war plans. It slowed Russian efforts to seize the Donbas region, the center of Ukraine's industrial activity.

Mariupol has been a major interest of Russia since the start of its invasion on February 24. Capturing the city would permit Russia to establish a land path to Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula. Russia annexed³ the area in 2014.

Weeks of fierce attacks and resistance

A huge steel production center and other factories were heavily damaged by Russian attacks that flattened⁴ much of Mariupol. Thousands have been killed in bombings that also destroyed homes, hospitals and other public buildings.

The dead include about 300 people who had been sheltered at the Mariupol Drama Theater. Russia bombed the building, even though its roof had the Russian word for "CHILDREN" painted in huge white letters.

Boychenko told The Associated Press that at least 21,000 people were killed in Mariupol. He said bodies are all over the streets. He accused Russia of burning many more bodies to hide evidence.

Boychenko said that several Ukrainian groups are still fighting the Russians in Mariupol. They include the 36th Marine⁵ Brigade, the Azov Regiment⁶, some Interior Ministry⁷ troops and border guards.

The Azov Regiment is an experienced volunteer force that is widely considered one of the country's strongest. It is defending the Azovstal steel factory property, an area of almost 11 square kilometers.

The 36th Marine Brigade was holding defensive⁸ positions at two other factories but used all its supplies and ammunition⁹. The Ukrainian fighters tried to break through Russia's lines.

Boychenko said that some of the soldiers joined the Azov force and some were captured by the Russians. He did not provide more details.

Concern about possible chemical attacks

The Russian military said Thursday that a total of 1,160 Ukrainian troops surrendered this week. The report could not be independently confirmed.

Fear is growing in Mariupol that Russia might use chemical weapons to crush resistance at the Azovstal plant and other areas of the city.

Eduard Basurin is a Russia-allied separatist official in eastern Ukraine. He appeared to call for that Monday. On Russian state television, he said Russian-backed forces should block all the exits out of the factory and "use chemical troops to smoke them out of there."

He later said that no chemical weapons were used.

The Azov Regiment reported Monday that a drone had dropped a poisonous substance on its positions, but did not cause any serious injuries. A Ukrainian defense¹⁰ official said the attack possibly involved the chemical phosphorus.

Ukrainian officials have said that the Russian military has blocked humanitarian¹¹ aid from reaching Mariupol, leaving the city without food, water and power. The Russian troops have also turned back buses sent to transport civilians¹² to safety. About 150,000 have been able to flee the city in their own vehicles.

Boychenko said that at least 33,500, and, possibly, up to 50,000 Mariupol residents have been taken to "filtration camps" in the separatist-controlled east. He said Russia then sends the captured to distant, poor areas of Russia.

Mayor says Russia is spreading propaganda in the city

Mariupol has seen communications cut since the start of the attack. Russia has launched its own radio broadcasts in the city, spreading propaganda, Boychenko said.

The broadcasts are, in his words, "telling people that Kyiv and other cities have been captured and they have been abandoned."

The fighting in Mariupol has forced the Russian military to keep a lot of troops in the city. That is delaying the start of its planned new offensive in eastern Ukraine.

"As long as the street fighting is going on, Russia can't remove troops from Mariupol and deploy¹³ them to other areas, including Donbas," Oleh Zhdanov, an independent military expert, told the AP.

He said, "Mariupol remains¹⁴ a major symbol of the Ukrainian resistance."

Words in This Story

region –n. a part of a country, of the world, that is different or separate from other parts in some way

annex² –v. to add (an area or region) to a country, state; to take control of (a territory or place)

drone –n. a kind of small aircraft that flies without a pilot

filtration –n. the process of removing something unwanted from a liquid, such as water, or gas using a device called a filter

abandoned –adj. left without needed protection or care; given up

symbol –n. something that expresses or represents a particular idea or quality

1 interfered   

v.干预( interfere的过去式和过去分词 )；调停；妨碍；干涉

参考例句：

• Complete absorption in sports interfered with his studies. 专注于运动妨碍了他的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am not going to be interfered with. 我不想别人干扰我的事情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 annex   

vt.兼并，吞并；n.附属建筑物

参考例句：

• It plans to annex an England company in order to enlarge the market.它计划兼并一家英国公司以扩大市场。
• The annex has been built on to the main building.主楼配建有附属的建筑物。

3 annexed   

[法] 附加的，附属的

参考例句：

• Germany annexed Austria in 1938. 1938年德国吞并了奥地利。
• The outlying villages were formally annexed by the town last year. 那些偏远的村庄于去年正式被并入该镇。

4 flattened   

[医]（水）平扁的，弄平的

参考例句：

• She flattened her nose and lips against the window. 她把鼻子和嘴唇紧贴着窗户。
• I flattened myself against the wall to let them pass. 我身体紧靠着墙让他们通过。

5 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

6 regiment   

n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制

参考例句：

• As he hated army life,he decide to desert his regiment.因为他嫌恶军队生活，所以他决心背弃自己所在的那个团。
• They reformed a division into a regiment.他们将一个师整编成为一个团。

7 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

8 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。

9 ammunition   

n.军火，弹药

参考例句：

• A few of the jeeps had run out of ammunition.几辆吉普车上的弹药已经用光了。
• They have expended all their ammunition.他们把弹药用光。

10 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。

11 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

12 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。

13 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。

14 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。