美国宣布释放战略石油储备 意在何为?

The US has announced the first “test” sale of oil from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve since Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, in a move that underlines its ability to respond to any energy market turmoil as a result of the Ukrainian crisis.

美国宣布将释放战略石油储备(Strategic Petroleum Reserve)，进行1990年伊拉克入侵科威特以来首次石油“试销”，此举突显美国有能力应对乌克兰危机引发的任何能源市场动荡。

The Department of Energy described the planned release of up to 5m barrels of oil, less than 1 per cent of the 696m in the reserve, as intended “to assess the system’s capabilities in the event of a disruption”.

美国能源部(Department of Energy)称，释放至多500万桶石油的计划——不到6.96亿桶储备总量的1%——意在“评估发生中断情况下的系统能力”。

The White House was not associating the release with the Crimean crisis. The energy department said the sale had long been planned for the time of year when refineries stock up for the summer driving

奥巴马政府并没有将此举与克里米亚危机联系起来。能源部表示，此次试销是早就在计划之中的，眼下正是炼油厂面向夏季驾车高峰增加库存的时候。不过，分析师们提出，宣布24年来首次“试销”，将向正在克里米亚蠢蠢欲动的俄罗斯发出一个信号。“此举的时机使其看起来像是对着俄方发出的警告信号，”法国兴业银行(Société Générale)全球石油研究主管迈克尔•维特纳(Michael Wittner)在纽约表示。

season. However, analysts suggested that the announcement of the first “test” sale in 24 years would send a signal to Russia following its move into Crimea. “The timing of this makes it seem like a warning shot across the bow towards the Russians,” said Michael Wittner, head of global oil research at Société Générale in New York.

被释放的石油将是“高硫油”，与俄罗斯出口的相当大部分石油类似，这意味着这次试验将评估系统应对俄罗斯供应中断的准备就绪程度。

The oil to be released is “sour” – high in sulphur – like much of the oil exported from Russia, implying that the test will assess the system’s readiness to cope with a disruption of Russian supplies.

美国宣布释放战略石油储备之际，莫斯科与西方之间的紧张局势升级，症结是定于周日举行的有俄罗斯撑腰的克里米亚独立公投。

The US announced the oil release as tensions ratchet up between Moscow and the west over Sunday’s Russia-backed independence referendum in Crimea.

美国国务卿约翰•克里(John Kerry)警告莫斯科方面，如果俄罗斯不收手，针对该国的制裁将很快收紧。“如果作出错误的选择，局面可能很快变得难看，”克里表示。

John Kerry, US secretary of state, warned Moscow of rapidly tightening sanctions if it did not back down. “It can get ugly fast if the wrong choices are made,” he said.

七大工业化国家集团(G7)发表声明称，克里米亚即将举行的公投将既不合法，也“没有道义力量”，因为那里已有俄军部队存在。G7警告，如果克里姆林宫企图吞并克里米亚，将采取“进一步行动”。

The Group of Seven industrialised countries issued a statement saying the vote was both illegal and had “no moral force” because of the presence of Russian troops. They warned of “further action” if the Kremlin attempted to annex Crimea.

武力恫吓升级的迹象之一是，据白俄罗斯媒体报道，克里姆林宫已同意派遣至多15架俄军战斗机进驻白俄罗斯境内的基地，以反制北约(Nato)在波兰和波罗的海国家加强的空中巡逻；五角大楼表示，将派遣12架F-16战斗机进驻波兰。

In a sign of escalated sabre-rattling, Belarusian media said the Kremlin had agreed to send up to 15 Russian fighters to bases in Belarus to counter escalated Nato air patrols in Poland and the Baltics; the Pentagon said it would send 12 F-16 fighters to Poland.

尽管如此，美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)指示克里会晤俄罗斯外长谢尔盖•拉夫罗夫(Sergei Lavrov)，以求避免在公投问题上彻底闹翻。克里和拉夫罗夫定于明日在伦敦会面。