VOA标准英语2010年-US, Russia Swap Spies

Sketch¹ shows 10 Russians in US courtroom before being ordered deported² in spy swap³ with Moscow

A U.S. judge has ordered 10 suspects in a Russian spy ring deported as part of a swap between the United States and Russia. Judge Kimba Wood handed down her order in New York City moments after all 10 pleaded guilty in what a federal prosecutor⁴ called a plea bargain. U.S. Justice Department officials say that in exchange for the 10, Russia will free four people that U.S. officials say were jailed for alleged⁵ contacts with Western intelligence. The four have not been identified. But Justice Department officials say three were convicted of treason. Earlier Thursday, Russian nuclear scientist Igor Sutyagin reportedly left a Moscow jail for Vienna, on his way to London.

The arrest of 10 Russians accused of spying surprised many people here in the United States, and in Russia. So many at one time.  Now, they have pleaded guilty to conspiracy⁶ to act as unregistered agents of a foreign country.

 

This is what one of their attorneys had to say.

"Initially⁷, the decision to plead guilty was a very difficult one, and as I mentioned, involved numerous factors," said Robert Baum, Anna Chapman's attorney.

Shift now to halfway⁸ around the world and the focus on Russian scientist Igor Sutyagin. He was convicted six years ago of spying for the U.S.  His brother says American officials sought his release.

"From Igor's conversation with a general, it became clear that this question was being solved on the highest level, most likely with the involvement of Russian and U.S. presidents," said Igor Sutyagin' s brother, Dmitry.

One of the 10 Russians, Anna Chapman, captured the attention of many Americans with her looks and stories of her New York party lifestyle.  Her attorney and her mother expect Chapman back in Moscow on Friday.

"She didn't want to do anything bad, but she has got her parents into trouble, caused problems for the people with whom she worked and for her friends," said Anna Chapman's mother, Irina Kushchenko.

U.S. authorities say the Russians mostly lived and worked quietly in the United States for years - some raising children - while trying to gather information on U.S. nuclear weapons and politics for Russian intelligence. 

Former CIA agent Bob Baer and others in the intelligence community say they are shocked at the Russians' clandestine⁹ activities.

"The Cold War is over," said Bob Baer. "The Russians may not know it, but it's over.  We are on the same side. The fact that the FBI got in their communications is extraordinary, or to actually meet them and pretend to be Russians.  They were completely and totally compromised and this is going to cause an enormous scandal in Moscow."

 

The last time Washington and Moscow publicly swapped¹⁰ prisoners was on this Berlin bridge in 1986.  Anatoly Sharansky, a famous Soviet¹¹ dissident, and three other prisoners were exchanged for communist spies detained in the West.
 

1 sketch   

n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述

参考例句：

• My sister often goes into the country to sketch. 我姐姐常到乡间去写生。
• I will send you a slight sketch of the house.我将给你寄去房屋的草图。

2 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 swap   

n.交换；vt.交换，用...作交易

参考例句：

• I will swap you my bicycle for your radio.我想拿我的自行车换你的收音机。
• This comic was a swap that I got from Nick.这本漫画书是我从尼克那里换来的。

4 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

5 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

6 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

7 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

8 halfway   

adj.中途的，不彻底的，部分的；adv.半路地，在中途，在半途

参考例句：

• We had got only halfway when it began to get dark.走到半路，天就黑了。
• In study the worst danger is give up halfway.在学习上，最忌讳的是有始无终。

9 clandestine   

adj.秘密的，暗中从事的

参考例句：

• She is the director of clandestine operations of the CIA.她是中央情报局秘密行动的负责人。
• The early Christians held clandestine meetings in caves.早期的基督徒在洞穴中秘密聚会。

10 swapped   

交换（工作）( swap的过去式和过去分词 )； 用…替换，把…换成，掉换（过来）

参考例句：

• I liked her coat and she liked mine, so we swapped. 我喜欢她的外套，她喜欢我的外套，于是我们就交换了。
• At half-time the manager swapped some of the players around. 经理在半场时把几名队员换下了场。

11 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。