VOA标准英语2010年-Political Volatility Threatens Key US

For American soldiers of the 101st Airborne, Manas Air Transit¹ Center is a welcome patch of America in the heart of Central Asia. Two hours away is their ultimate destination - the battlefields of Afghanistan. Manas offers a flying gas station for American pilots. Drawing from bladders containing 5 million gallons of fuel, tankers² from Manas fuel jets over Afghanistan, eliminating the need to ever land in the mountainous nation.

Manas Air Transit Center provides key location

Taliban attacks on trucks coming along the southern route, through Pakistan, have made the northern air route - through Kyrgyzstan - increasingly valuable.

Colonel Dwight Sones, the Manas Center commander, said "Kyrgyzstan in itself is really the crown jewel of Central Asia, in terms of its location, its sphere of influence with the surrounding countries."

In mid-June, though, just as Colonel Sones arrived here, ethnic³ Krygyz and ethnic Uzbek turned on each other in Osh, about 320 kilometers away. Hundreds died. In the past, Kyrgyz political passions have turned against the U.S. base. Last year, the Kyrgyz parliament voted 78 to one to expel the Americans.

Politics at play in region

Washington turned the situation around by nearly quadrupling the annual rent, to $60 million.

Kyrgyz scholar Alisher Khamidov said politicians are turning the American base into a political football prior to the October 10th elections. "These parties are agitating⁴ again for kicking the base out. They are arguing, 'Look this Western presence is the cause of all our troubles.' I have seen some politicians calling for the eviction⁵ of this base, with the hope, with the expectation that Kyrgyzstan will regain⁶ its stability, and its sovereignty," said Khamidov.

Opposition⁷ also comes from Russia. Moscow ruled Kyrgyzstan from 1876 until 1991, when the Soviet⁸ Union collapsed⁹. Today, Kyrgyzstan is the only nation in the world to host both an American and a Russian base. Leonid Bondarets is an advisor¹⁰ for the Russian base at Kant, only 40 kilometers from the American base.

Bondarets said the U.S. base opened in 2001 on a temporary, one-year lease. He sees it as part of a larger American plan to strengthen its position in the region, with access to oil and gas in Central Asia and minerals in Afghanistan.

Russia retains a lot of influence here. Most people over 30 speak Russian. One fifth of Kyrygz workers work in Russia. The money they send home to Kyrgyzstan is a valuable economic lifeline for this impoverished¹¹, landlocked nation of 5.3 million people.

US makes extra effort to help

Americans at Manas are working overtime¹² to win local hearts and minds. American money is digging wells, roofing schools, buying local crafts, and building a women's shelter. Base commander Colonel Sones said, "We have the social side. We take the uniforms off, get in sports attire¹³, play volleyball, soccer, go see a ballet, meet the mayors. That is all part of that team building."

Valentin Bogatyrev, a political analyst¹⁴ in Bishkek, has never visited the Manas base, but he senses that Kyrgyz' attitudes are softening¹⁵ toward the U.S. presence. He said mainstream¹⁶ politicians are starting to value the base for contributing to the national budget, for development projects, for upgrades to Bishkek's international airport, and for employing 900 local workers.

So in the roller coaster that is Kyrgyz politics, the United States is gambling¹⁷ that goodwill¹⁸ and dollars will carry the day, keeping open this vital back door to Afghanistan.

1 transit   

n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过

参考例句：

• His luggage was lost in transit.他的行李在运送中丢失。
• The canal can transit a total of 50 ships daily.这条运河每天能通过50条船。

2 tankers   

运送大量液体或气体的轮船[卡车]( tanker的名词复数 )； 油轮； 罐车； 油槽车

参考例句：

• They should stop offloading waste from oil tankers into the sea. 他们应当停止从油轮上往海里倾倒废弃物。
• The harbour admits large tankers and freighters. 这个港口容得下巨型油船和货轮。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 agitating   

搅动( agitate的现在分词 )； 激怒； 使焦虑不安； （尤指为法律、社会状况的改变而）激烈争论

参考例句：

• political groups agitating for social change 鼓吹社会变革的政治团体
• They are agitating to assert autonomy. 他们正在鼓吹实行自治。

5 eviction   

n.租地等的收回

参考例句：

• The family have won a temporary reprieve from eviction.这个家庭暂时免于被逐出。
• He claimed damages for unlawful eviction.他要求对非法驱逐作出赔偿。

6 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。

7 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。

8 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。

9 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。

10 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

11 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 overtime   

adj.超时的，加班的；adv.加班地

参考例句：

• They are working overtime to finish the work.为了完成任务他们正在加班加点地工作。
• He was paid for the overtime he worked.他领到了加班费。

13 attire   

v.穿衣，装扮[同]array；n.衣着；盛装

参考例句：

• He had no intention of changing his mode of attire.他无意改变着装方式。
• Her attention was attracted by his peculiar attire.他那奇特的服装引起了她的注意。

14 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。

15 softening   

变软，软化

参考例句：

• Her eyes, softening, caressed his face. 她的眼光变得很温柔了。它们不住地爱抚他的脸。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）
• He might think my brain was softening or something of the kind. 他也许会觉得我婆婆妈妈的，已经成了个软心肠的人了。

16 mainstream   

n.（思想或行为的）主流；adj.主流的

参考例句：

• Their views lie outside the mainstream of current medical opinion.他们的观点不属于当今医学界观点的主流。
• Polls are still largely reflects the mainstream sentiment.民调还在很大程度上反映了社会主流情绪。

17 gambling   

n.赌博；投机

参考例句：

• They have won a lot of money through gambling.他们赌博赢了很多钱。
• The men have been gambling away all night.那些人赌了整整一夜。

18 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。