Over the past two months the west has nervously watched events in Ukraine, hoping the country might step back from the brink. On Tuesday, those hopes received a severe blow on the streets of Kiev. In clashes between Ukrainian government forces and opposition protesters, at least 26 people were killed and more than 240 injured. With violence breaking out elsewhere, there are fears that Ukraine – a nation of 46m sitting on a faultline between western and eastern Europe – may be sliding towards civil war.
過去兩個月裏,西方國家一直緊張不安地注視著烏克蘭事態,希望它能扭轉危局。週二,基輔街頭髮生的衝突,讓希望變得渺茫。在烏克蘭官方武裝與反對派示威者的衝突中,至少26人喪生,逾240人受傷。隨著暴力衝突蔓延至烏克蘭其他地區,人們擔心,這個國家可能正在滑向內戰。擁有4600萬人口的烏克蘭,位於東西歐之間的核心爭奪地帶。