美国国家公共电台 NPR--Ukraine wants the EU to ban Russian tourists

Ukraine wants the EU to ban Russian tourists

Transcript¹

European Union countries along the Russian border want the rest of the bloc² to join them in restricting or even banning tourist travel by Russians.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Ukraine is asking the European Union to stop allowing Russian citizens to travel there as tourists. As Teri Schultz reports, European governments on the border with Russia are on board and asking the rest of the EU to join the effort.

TERI SCHULTZ, BYLINE³: Why should Russian citizens get to enjoy leisure travel in Europe while millions of Ukrainians have had to flee for their lives under attack from Moscow? Some European Union leaders say, they shouldn't.

GABRIELUS LANDSBERGIS: If we find a solution, in effect, Russian tourism in Europe would be stopped.

SCHULTZ: Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielus Landsbergis wants EU governments to stop issuing visas to Russians other than for humanitarian⁴ reasons, as his country has done since Russia's invasion. The other countries sharing a border with Russia or Belarus have already decided⁵ to restrict or ban the issuance of new visas to Russians. Landsbergis says an EU-wide agreement to do so, paired with heavier screening at entry points, would not only punish Russia but protect Europe from some of those he terms so-called Russian tourists.

LANDSBERGIS: They're coming in with Schengen visa. And they are, you know, participating in protests and shouting all kinds of stuff in support of Putin regime, war in Ukraine and things like that. So these type of questions could be asked on the border. This is what we're looking into. And this is - again, this is what we're going to propose for a debate on Tuesday. Like, can we ask on the border, what is your purpose? What is your stance on war, you know? Who does Crimea belong to, you know, at the very least?

SCHULTZ: But to actually stop people from travelling into the EU requires the cooperation of all other member countries. That's because a visa issued by one government allows travel throughout most of the bloc. Given that most flights from Russia are now cancelled due to sanctions, the majority of visa holders⁶ must enter by land through these border countries, such as Lithuania. The call for a crackdown has its critics. Several governments, notably⁷ Germany, say they're opposed, as is the EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell.

JOSEP BORRELL: (Through interpreter) Are we going to close the door to those Russians who don't want war and don't want to live under Putin's regime? It's not a good idea.

SCHULTZ: Finland says it will reduce the number of visas it issues to Russians by 90% starting this week. Antero Holmila is a history professor in Finland. He says preventing Russian travel could be counterproductive due to the Russian government's blackout of Western news. Holmila has a suggestion.

ANTERO HOLMILA: When they enter Finland, you know, rather than seeing the advertisements about the luxury goods or whatever, they see the landscape in Ukraine. And, you know, it doesn't have to be like somebody tells or kind of tries to indoctrinate them in that sense, but rather just that they see - instead of luxury goods, they see the devastation⁸. I mean, at least that would already jolt⁹ people to kind of confront an alternative and probably very unpleasant reality for them.

SCHULTZ: But Oksana Bulda, a volunteer with the Promote Ukraine NGO in Brussels, hopes the EU does block Russian tourists.

OKSANA BULDA: The level of impact of sanctions that have been introduced recently is not sufficient. And it is not directly affecting ordinary Russians. That's why the level of support for the war in Russia is so high, which is 77%. And taking away their right to travel to Europe is something that Europe could use not only to protect itself, but also to directly affect each Russian.

SCHULTZ: That does not appear to be on the cards yet, though. For now, it seems the most likely compromise will be to suspend an agreement that made it easier for Russians to get visas. This may slow them down, but it won't stop them.

For NPR News, I'm Teri Schultz in Brussels.

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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 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

3 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。

4 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。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 holders   

支持物( holder的名词复数 )； 持有者； （支票等）持有人； 支托（或握持）…之物

参考例句：

• Slaves were mercilessly ground down by slave holders. 奴隶受奴隶主的残酷压迫。
• It is recognition of compassion's part that leads the up-holders of capital punishment to accuse the abolitionists of sentimentality in being more sorry for the murderer than for his victim. 正是对怜悯的作用有了认识，才使得死刑的提倡者指控主张废除死刑的人感情用事，同情谋杀犯胜过同情受害者。

7 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

8 devastation   

n.毁坏；荒废；极度震惊或悲伤

参考例句：

• The bomb caused widespread devastation. 炸弹造成大面积破坏。
• There was devastation on every side. 到处都是破坏的创伤。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 jolt   

v.（使）摇动，（使）震动，（使）颠簸

参考例句：

• We were worried that one tiny jolt could worsen her injuries.我们担心稍微颠簸一下就可能会使她的伤势恶化。
• They were working frantically in the fear that an aftershock would jolt the house again.他们拼命地干着，担心余震可能会使房子再次受到震动。