VOA常速英语2008年-Russia Threatens to Block Kosovo's UN Membershi

By Peter Fedynsky
Moscow
02 April 2008

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Moscow can use its seat on the Security Council to block Kosovo's membership in the United Nations.  The statement coincides with the arrival in Belgrade of the first planeload of Russian humanitarian¹ aid for Kosovo's Serb minority.  VOA Correspondent Peter Fedynsky reports from the Russian capital.

Addressing lawmakers in Russia's lower house of parliament, the State Duma, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said increased tensions in Serbian areas of Kosovo and general dissatisfaction in Serbia is the direct result of what he called irresponsible and short-sighted policies aimed at the unilateral declaration on Kosovo's independence. 

Lavrov accused the European Union of sanctioning and encouraging that independence.

Lavrov says that Russia, as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, is in a position not to allow Kosovo to become a full-fledged member of the United Nations.  There is, he adds, no way around this.

Political analyst² Alexei Malashenko of the Moscow Carnegie Center says Russia can count on a few former Soviet³ republics, such as Kazakhstan, to support its position on Kosovo in the United Nations.  But he notes that the threat of a veto no longer has the impact it did when Moscow's Security Council seat was held by the Soviet Union. 

Malashenko says Russia will have a difficult time enforcing its opposition⁴, particularly if a majority of U.N. members favor Kosovo's admission.  He says Russia and Serbia will need to go beyond words to deal with the political realities of Kosovo's independence.

Malashenko says Belgrade will ultimately need to back down, because its future is with Europe.  Serbia's relations with Russia, he says, represent a tactic⁵, adding that Belgrade and Moscow would both like to find a compromise solution on Kosovo.

Meanwhile, the first shipment of Russian humanitarian assistance, including children's food, arrived in Belgrade for delivery to Kosovo's Serb minority.  Russia plans to send two or three more planeloads, for a total of 140 tons.  Critics say the assistance is of little consequence and merely represents a public relations campaign.

1 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。

2 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

3 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。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。