European
peace at risk over Ukraine crisis, Russia warns
Tue,
May 06, 2014
By SLAVYANSK/ Staff
reporter
Russia warned yesterday that
Europe’s peace was at risk over the escalating crisis in Ukraine, where
deadly fighting raged around a flashpoint eastern city and the interim Ukrainian
president warned of “war.”
European leaders fearing that
an all-out civil war was breaking out on their eastern flank have launched a
desperate new peace bid, trying to force Ukraine and Russia to find a
negotiated solution before it is too late.
Fierce exchanges of fire
were taking place to the east and south of the town of Slavyansk, the epicenter of the armed
insurgency, as Ukrainian troops corralled pro-Russian gunmen toward the center
for what could be a devastating showdown.
“They are waging a war on
us, on our own territory,” Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov told
reporters as he oversaw the offensive in the combat zone. “My mission is to
eliminate(消滅) the terrorists.”
The advance on Slavyansk was part of a
wider military operation in the east to root out the insurgents, who are
holding more than a dozen towns and who have declared two autonomous
territories around them.
Russia, which denies any hand
in the eastern or southern violence, warned in a foreign ministry report
yesterday that the unrest in Ukraine
was now “fraught withsuch destructive consequences for Europe’s
peace, stability and democratic development that it is absolutely necessary to
prevent it.”
The report accused
Ukrainian “ultra-nationalists” (極端民族主義分子)— who Moscow claims controls Kiev’s government — of rights violationson
a “mass” scale.
Earlier yesterday, Ukraine’s interim president declared that
Russian meddling(干涉) had brought
war to his country, and warned that pro-Russian provocateurs(奸細) might stage violence
in Kiev during celebrations on Friday marking the Soviet victory over Nazi
Germany in World War II.
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/front/archives/2014/05/06/2003589675
Structure of the Lead：
WHO- Russia
WHEN-yesterday
WHAT-Russia warned that
Europe’s peace was at risk over the escalating crisis in Ukraine
WHY-Because deadly fighting raged around a
flashpoint eastern city and the interim Ukrainian president warned of “war.”
WHERE-not given
HOW-not given
Keywords：
1. flashpoint 引爆點
2. interim 臨時的
3. democratic民主的
4. eliminate消滅
5. insurgency 暴動
6. autonomous自治的
7. showdown對決
8. territory領土
9. root out剷除
10. insurgents叛亂分子
