VOA常速英语2021--南非拥有138年历史的议会大厦发生大火

This is VOA News. Via remote, I'm Marissa Melton.

这里是美国之音新闻。我是玛丽莎·梅尔顿，为您远程报道。

U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday told Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that the United States and its allies will "respond decisively" if Russia further invades Ukraine.

美国总统拜登星期天对乌克兰总统泽伦斯基说，如果俄罗斯进一步入侵乌克兰，美国及其盟友将作出“果断回应”。

The call came days after Biden held a second conversation in a month with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid tensions on Russia's border with Ukraine, where Russia has massed some 100,000 troops.

几天前，拜登与俄罗斯总统普京进行了一个月内的第二次对话。此时，俄罗斯与乌克兰边境局势紧张，俄罗斯在那里集结了大约10万名士兵。

Biden and Zelenskiy discussed preparations for a series of upcoming diplomatic meetings to address the crisis, this according to the White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki.

据白宫新闻秘书珍·普萨基称，拜登和泽伦斯基讨论了为解决这场危机而即将举行的一系列的外交会议所需的准备工作。

Zelenskiy said on Twitter that they discussed joint¹ actions on keeping peace in Europe and preventing further escalation².

泽伦斯基在推特上称，他们商讨了维护欧洲和平和防止局势进一步升级的联合行动。

Representatives from the United States and Russia are set to hold talks on January 9 and 10 in Geneva that's to be followed by Russia-NATO Council talks and a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

美国和俄罗斯的代表定于1月9日和10日在日内瓦举行会谈，随后将举行俄罗斯-北约理事会会谈，以及欧洲安全与合作组织会议。

All meetings scheduled in mid-January.

所有这些会议都定于1月中旬举行。

A major fire ripped through South Africa's 138-year-old Parliament complex on Sunday, gutting³ offices and causing some ceilings to collapse⁴ at a site that has hosted some of the country's pivotal moments.

周日，一场大火席卷了南非一座拥有138年历史的议会大楼，办公室被烧毁，部分天花板坍塌，这里曾是南非一些关键时刻的举办地。

As firefighters struggled to tame the blaze, a dark plume⁵ of smoke and flames rose high into the air above the southern city of Cape⁶ Town.

消防员奋力控制火情之时，黑色的浓烟和火焰冲上南部城市开普敦的上空。

A fire and rescue spokesman said about 70 firefighters were still battling the fire hours after it started in the early morning.

一名消防和救援发言人表示，距大火于凌晨爆发已过去数小时，约有70名消防员仍在与大火搏斗。

No injuries have been reported and Parliament itself had been closed for the holidays.

目前没有人员伤亡的报道，议会本身也因假日而处于关闭状态。

Visiting the scene, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said a person was being held and is being questioned by police in connection with the blaze.

南非总统西里尔·拉马福萨在视察现场时称，一名与火灾有关的人已被警方拘留，正在接受讯问。

Police have confirmed they have detained a 51-year-old man.

警方证实，他们已拘留了一名51岁的男子。

From Washington, this is VOA News.

于华盛顿报道，这里是美国之音新闻。

1 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。

2 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

3 gutting   

n.去内脏v.毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的现在分词 )；取出…的内脏

参考例句：

4 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

5 plume   

n.羽毛；v.整理羽毛，骚首弄姿，用羽毛装饰

参考例句：

• Her hat was adorned with a plume.她帽子上饰着羽毛。
• He does not plume himself on these achievements.他并不因这些成就而自夸。

6 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。