VOA标准英语2009年-Russia Considers Major Troop Withdrawal in

Russia is reported considering the withdrawal¹ of more than 20,000 Interior Ministry² troops from Chechnya and an effective end to a state of war in the Caucasus republic. The move may be linked to financial problems caused by the global economic crisis.

Russian news media are quoting anonymous³ Interior Ministry sources as saying Moscow could end what it refers to as an "anti-terrorist" operation in Chechnya by the end of March. A statement broadcast on Russian state television by Chechnya's Kremlin-backed president, Ramzan Kadyrov, has added to the speculation⁴.
　
Ramzan Kadyrov

Kadyrov says there is information that all restrictions⁵ imposed on Chechnya will be lifted by the end of this month. He says the struggle against rebels is effectively over, and only remains⁶ on paper. He says when restrictions end, the airport and customs service in Grozny will function properly, and Chechnya will operate like a normal subject of the Russian Federation⁷.

The anti-terrorism operation in Chechnya was launched in 1999 under Russia's late president Boris Yeltsin. As many as 100,000 people may have died in the two wars between Russia and Chechnya since the collapse⁸ of the Soviet⁹ Union, but exact figures are not known.

An Interior Ministry spokesman told VOA his superiors did not tell him anything about à possible troop withdrawal. But the Interfax news agency quotes unnamed law enforcement officials as saying more than 20,000 out of the current 50,000 troops currently in Chechnya could be withdrawn¹⁰. And the speaker of Russia's lower house of Parliament, Boris Gryzlov, says conditions in the republic are much improved and allow for an end to the anti-terrorist operation. But he also notes the expense of maintaining so many troops.
　
A Russian soldier looks on from top of a building on a patrol mission in Chechen provincial¹¹ capital Grozny, Russia, (2008 file photo)

Gryzlov says lawmakers understand that enforcing the anti-terrorist regime requires rather significant forces and resources; forces in terms of Interior Ministry troops, and resources in terms of the federal budget. He adds that in a time of global economic crisis, Russia needs to consider the need to keep such a large force in Chechnya.

Alexey Malashenko, military analyst¹² at the Moscow Carnegie Center, told VOA he agrees the situation in Chechnya is much better than it was five-six years ago. But he disputes Ramzan Kadyrov's estimate that no more than 50 to 100 insurgents¹³ remain.

Malashenko notes the situation in the republic is complicated. There are, he says successes as well as problems; and just as before, there are those who live in the mountains and cities who continue to launch attacks on federal forces and those of Ramzan Kadyrov.

Malashenko adds that shooting in Chechnya will not stop with the wave of a wand, or with a signature on a piece of paper, but Kadyrov will, nonetheless, try to show Moscow he can keep control of the republic with his own forces.

The latest fatality¹⁴ in Chechnya occurred Wednesday, when masked gunmen abducted¹⁵ and shot a police officer in the southern Vedeno region.

1 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。

2 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

3 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

4 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 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。

8 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。

9 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。

10 withdrawn   

vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出

参考例句：

• Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。
• All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

11 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

12 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。

13 insurgents   

n.起义，暴动，造反( insurgent的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The regular troops of Baden joined the insurgents. 巴登的正规军参加到起义军方面来了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Against the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents, these problems are manageable. 要对付塔利班与伊拉克叛乱分子，这些问题还是可以把握住的。 来自互联网

14 fatality   

n.不幸，灾祸，天命

参考例句：

• She struggle against fatality in vain.她徒然奋斗反抗宿命。
• He began to have a growing sense of fatality.他开始有一种越来越强烈的宿命感。

15 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。