VOA慢速英语2018 马蒂斯指责俄罗斯干涉马其顿更名投票

Mattis Accuses Russia of Interfering¹ in Macedonian Vote

American Defense² Secretary Jim Mattis has accused Russia of trying to influence a planned vote in Macedonia. The vote could open a path for the country to join NATO.

美国国防部长马蒂斯指责俄罗斯试图干涉马其顿一项预定投票。这次投票可以为该国加入北约开辟道路。

Mattis spoke³ to reporters traveling with him to Skopje, the Macedonian capital.

马蒂斯对与他一同前往马斯顿首都斯科普里的记者发表了讲话。

He said he had "no doubt" that Moscow had given money to pro-Russian groups to defeat the vote about changing Macedonia’s name. A name change would end a dispute with Greece, which has territory of the same name. Greece has repeatedly blocked Macedonia’s request to join NATO.

他说，莫斯科毫无疑问已经向亲俄罗斯团体提供资金以阻挠马其顿更名的投票。更名能结束该国与拥有同一名称领土的希腊的争议。希腊一再阻止了马其顿加入北约的请求。

Mattis said, "We ought to leave the Macedonian people to make up their own minds.''

马蒂斯表示：“我们应该让马其顿人民自己做出决定。”

Macedonians will vote on September 30th to decide on the possible name change. In June, Greece and Macedonia agreed that Macedonia would change its name. In return Greece would end its objections to Macedonia’s request to join NATO.

马其顿人将在9月30日投票决定这次可能的更名。今年6月，希腊同马其顿商定马其顿会更改其名称。作为回报，希腊将停止反对马其顿加入北约。

Other Western leaders had accused Russia of interference in the issue earlier, including the Chancellor⁴ of Germany and the chief of NATO. In July, Greece expelled two Russian diplomats⁵ accused of giving money to groups against the name change. Russia objected to the expulsions as baseless.

其他西方领导人早些时候也曾指责俄罗斯干涉这个问题，其中包括德国总理和北约秘书长。今年7月，希腊驱逐了两名俄罗斯外交官，他们被控向反对更名的团体提供资金。俄罗斯对这次驱逐表示反对，称其毫无依据。

The dispute over the name began when Macedonia gained independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Greece argued that the use of the name was an insult to Greek history. Officials also said sharing the name could lead to a Macedonian claim on the Greek territory named Macedonia.

当马其顿1991年从南斯拉夫获得独立时，这个名称的争议就开始了。希腊认为使用这个名称是对希腊历史的冒犯。官员们还说，分享这个名称可能会导致马其顿对同样名为马其顿的希腊领土进行声索。

More than 100 United Nations member-countries recognize Macedonia officially as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.

100个联合国会员国认可马其顿的正式名称为前南斯拉夫马其顿共和国。

The vote will ask Macedonians to decide if they want to join the EU and NATO by “accepting the agreement between the Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Greece?" If the majority vote “yes” the country will be renamed the "Republic of North Macedonia."

这次投票要求马其顿人决定他们是否愿意通过接受马其顿共和国和希腊共和国之间的决议加入欧盟和北约。如果赞成票占多数，该国将会更名为北马其顿共和国。

I’m Caty Weaver⁶.

Words in This Story

doubt – n. to believe that something may not be true or is unlikely

empire – n. a group of countries or regions that are controlled by one ruler or one government

1 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。

2 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

3 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。

4 chancellor   

n.(英)大臣；法官；(德、奥)总理；大学校长

参考例句：

• They submitted their reports to the Chancellor yesterday.他们昨天向财政大臣递交了报告。
• He was regarded as the most successful Chancellor of modern times.他被认为是现代最成功的财政大臣。

5 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。