U.N. secretary general goes to Moscow for talks with President Putin

U.N. secretary general goes to Moscow for talks with President Putin

Transcript¹

U.N. Secretary General António Guterres was in Moscow Tuesday for talks with Russian President Putin and his foreign minister. The focus: U.N. efforts to ease the civilian² suffering in Ukraine.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

The United Nations' secretary-general was in Moscow yesterday for talks with President Vladimir Putin and his foreign minister. The focus of those talks - trying to ease the civilian suffering in Ukraine and setting up humanitarian³ corridors. From Moscow, NPR's Charles Maynes reports.

CHARLES MAYNES, BYLINE⁴: U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres arrived in Moscow, acknowledging serious differences with Russia over events unfolding in Ukraine.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ANTONIO GUTERRES: But that does not limit the possibility to have a very serious dialogue on how best we can work to minimize the suffering of people.

MAYNES: Guterres' main proposal - have the U.N. oversee⁵ efforts to evacuate⁶ civilians⁷ along humanitarian corridors that have repeatedly broken down amid acrimony between Kyiv and Moscow. The secretary-general pointed⁸ to the plight⁹ of Ukrainians trapped in a steelworks factory in the city of Mariupol, where Russian forces have laid siege as a crisis within a crisis. His office later issued a statement claiming President Vladimir Putin had agreed in principle to a U.N. role.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN: (Speaking Russian).

MAYNES: Yet in the televised portion of his meeting with Guterres at the Kremlin, Putin said the U.N. chief had been misled about Russia's humanitarian efforts in Mariupol and blamed Ukrainian fighters for preventing any civilians from leaving the area. Putin also explained to the U.N. diplomat¹⁰ Russia's legal justifications¹¹ for sending troops into Ukraine after Guterres called the move a, quote, "invasion." Russian authorities have criminalized that description of the military campaign, arguing its troops are on a limited humanitarian mission to protect Russian speakers in east Ukraine. In fact, the presence of Russian troops in Ukraine seemed the lone¹² point of consensus¹³ during the secretary-general's visit, including during this exchange with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Here's Guterres.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

GUTERRES: We have not Ukrainian troops in the territory of the Russian Federation¹⁴, but we have Russian troops in the territory of the Ukrainian Federation.

MAYNES: Lavrov leaned into his microphone and added.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

SERGEY LAVROV: (Through interpreter) This is true, I can confirm this.

MAYNES: It was a rare point of agreement in a visit marked by few.

Charles Maynes, NPR News, Moscow.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

3 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。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

6 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

7 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。

8 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

9 plight   

n.困境，境况，誓约，艰难；vt.宣誓，保证，约定

参考例句：

• The leader was much concerned over the plight of the refugees.那位领袖对难民的困境很担忧。
• She was in a most helpless plight.她真不知如何是好。

10 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

11 justifications   

正当的理由，辩解的理由( justification的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• If he a vulgar person, she does not have justifications for him. 如果他是个低级趣味的人，她早就不会理他了。
• It depends on their effect on competition and possible justifications. 这则取决于它们对于竞争的影响和可能存在的正当抗辩理由。

12 lone   

adj.孤寂的，单独的；唯一的

参考例句：

• A lone sea gull flew across the sky.一只孤独的海鸥在空中飞过。
• She could see a lone figure on the deserted beach.她在空旷的海滩上能看到一个孤独的身影。

13 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

14 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。