VOA标准英语2008年-Britain Warns Russia Over Military Operations i

British Foreign Secretary David Miliband has warned Russia that its military operations in the former Soviet¹ republic of Georgia undermine its relations with the West. Miliband made the comments after talks with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili on Tuesday. Stefan Bos reports for VOA from Tblisi.
　
Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili (L) and Britain's Foreign Secretary David Miliband meet in Tbilisi, 19 Aug 2008

Speaking to reporters in Tblisi, British Foreign Secretary Miliband accused Moscow of "violating international law" by sending troops into Georgia after violence erupted in breakaway province South Ossetia. He said Russia was "not living up to its word" on previous commitments to withdraw its troops from Georgia.

"And every day that goes by beyond the deadline of noon yesterday [Monday] is a day when the world can see that Russia is not living up to its word. And that is something very serious, not just for Georgia, it is very serious for Russian reputation around the world," he said. "But the political consequences of this are over the more medium term, and Russia is finding itself isolated², even from some of its traditional allies"

Miliband said that Britain was in "full solidarity³" with Georgia.

Earlier the NATO military alliance warned Russia that "it cannot continue with business as usual" while Russian troops remain in Georgia.

However on the streets of Tblisi some people have mixed feelings about the NATO statements.

Speaking through an interpreter, 48-year-old musician and political activist⁴ Tamriko Kadaidze told VOA News she regrets that the alliance has not given a clear timetable as to when Georgia can join NATO.

"I would like and appreciate that Georgia joins NATO. But as far as I understood they didn't tell anything that Georgia will join NATO," said Kadaidze.

She spoke⁵ in front of the Russian Embassy, where Georgians have dumped house hold garbage, ranging from toilet paper and a drum set, to a gas stove. The action is a protest against alleged⁶ looting by Russian forces in cities and villages, just outside the Georgian capital.

Residents have expressed growing frustration⁷ at what they view as the Russian soldiers attempts to strangle the capital and their unwillingness⁸ to quickly withdraw from central Georgia.

This reporter was forced to travel from central Georgia to Tblisi via a slippery mountainous road not even mentioned on maps. No journalists or residents were allowed to enter the devastated⁹ town of Gori, which is on the main road towards the Georgian capital. And Russian military helicopters could be seen flying low overhead.

While some Russian troops on the ground left their key positions in central Georgia, the others were still controlling a key road in the city of Hasuri, west of Gori. There has been concern that Russian troops are trying to create a buffer¹⁰ zone between South Ossetia and and the rest of the country.

However 24-year-old Tblisi resident Sandro Muchiori, who has a Russian mother, hopes the tensions will not lead to anti-Russian feelings.

"[I] love Russian people, I like their living style. I like this people. But, you know, their new president [Dmitry] Medvedev and his policies, I don't like. He is a very angry man," said Muchiori.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has said the promised withdrawal¹¹ of Russian troops will be complete by August 22. But he also made clear that some 500 Russian troops would remain in the country to protect the local population of South Ossetia, many of whom have Russian passports.

 

1 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。

2 isolated   

adj.与世隔绝的

参考例句：

• His bad behaviour was just an isolated incident. 他的不良行为只是个别事件。
• Patients with the disease should be isolated. 这种病的患者应予以隔离。

3 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

4 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

5 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。

6 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

7 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

8 unwillingness   

n. 不愿意，不情愿

参考例句：

• Her unwillingness to answer questions undermined the strength of her position. 她不愿回答问题，这不利于她所处的形势。
• His apparent unwillingness would disappear if we paid him enough. 如果我们付足了钱，他露出的那副不乐意的神情就会消失。

9 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

10 buffer   

n.起缓冲作用的人(或物)，缓冲器；vt.缓冲

参考例句：

• A little money can be a useful buffer in time of need.在急需时，很少一点钱就能解燃眉之急。
• Romantic love will buffer you against life's hardships.浪漫的爱会减轻生活的艰辛。

11 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。