双语新闻：奥巴马再度倚重美欧联盟

英语自学网

Obama’s pivot to Europe is a chance for a tiredcontinent
        　　Europeans have something to cheer at last. For years they feltunloved by the Americans. George W. Bush’s divide-and-rule (remember Old versus New Europe) was followed by BarackObama’s reinvention of the US as a Pacific power. What aboutus, these old allies wailed when Mr Obama unveiled the US pivotto Asia? Well, Europe is now promised powerful friends atpresidential court.
        　　在美国人“移情别恋”数年之后，欧洲人总算等来了值得欢呼的消息。之前，小布什(George W. Bush)的“分而治之”政策（想想新老欧洲之说），被巴拉克 奥巴马(Barack Obama)“把美国重塑为太平洋大国”的政策所取代。奥巴马提出美国把战略重心向亚洲转移，令美国的老盟友欧洲哀号，“那我们怎么办”？现在好了，欧洲注定又要成为美国白宫的亲密朋友了。
        　　Mr Obama’s nominations of John Kerry to the state department and Chuck Hagel to the Pentagonwould fill these two top posts with politicians that Europeans should clamour to do business with. They hail from a generation with Atlanticism in their blood: Americans whose worldview wasshaped by the importance of the alliance in fighting the cold war.
        　　对于国务卿和国防部长这两个相当重要的职位，奥巴马提名的人选分别是约翰 克里(John Kerry)和查克 哈格尔(Chuck Hagel)。欧洲人应该非常乐于与这两位政坛人物打交道。他们所属的那一代人已把大西洋主义融入了血液之中。他们的世界观都打上了“联盟对于打赢冷战非常重要”的烙印。
        　　They are staunch supporters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and the EU. Mr Hagelchaired the Atlantic Council, the Washington think-tank committed to sustaining transatlantic ties. Both nominees are stalwarts of the Munich Conference on Security Policy.
        　　他们是北约(Nato)和欧盟(EU)的铁杆支持者。哈格尔曾任美国大西洋理事会(Atlantic Council)主席，该理事会是一家设在华盛顿、致力于维持欧美关系的智囊机构。他们也都很热衷参加慕尼黑安全政策会议(Munich Conference on Security Policy)。
        　　There is more good news for those who feared that a continent engulfed in the eurozone crisis wasdoomed to geostrategic irrelevance. The White House wants to revive the long-stalled goal of atransatlantic free trade area. Europe is a cause of much frustration, you hear US officials say (notleast when the president has to meet three or four different “presidents” from Brussels), but it is stillAmerica’s staunchest ally and its most important economic partner. How better to reinvigorate thealliance (and generate much-needed economic growth) than a bonfire of the regulatory controlsand bureaucratic infighting that still stymie trade and investment.
        　　有些人担心，由于深陷于欧债危机之中，欧洲的地缘战略地位必然要受到削弱。这些人等来了更多好消息。美国白宫希望重新推动实现一个搁置已久的目标——建立美欧自由贸易区。虽然大家经常听到美国官员在说（不仅仅是奥巴马被迫与三四位来自欧盟的不同“首脑”会面之时），欧洲是全球的一大麻烦来源，但欧洲仍是美国最坚定的盟友、最重要的经济伙伴。让美欧联盟重新焕发活力（并且带来亟需的经济增长），比展开监管控制大战和官僚内斗好太多了，这两者仍在妨碍贸易和投资发展。
        　　True, the new mood in Washington highlights a problem facing one European leader. This week anofficial from the US state department stated publicly what the president’s aides have been sayingprivately for some time: Prime Minister David Cameron is barmy to be talking about a referendumthat could detach Britain from Europe. As far as the so-called special relationship goes, Atlanticism isnot an alternative to Europeanism. One certain consequence of Brexit would be a weakening ofBritain’s voice in Washington. Mr Cameron has now been put on notice that outside the EU, Britainwould be on its own.
        　　没错，华盛顿的新动向凸显出欧洲一位领导人面临的一个问题。美国国务院一位官员上周公开表示，一段时间以来，奥巴马的助理们私下里一直在说：英国首相戴维 卡梅伦(David Cameron)不断谈到就英国是否退出欧盟举行全民公决，这个主张很愚蠢。只要所谓特殊关系延续下去，大西洋主义就不会是欧洲主义的一个替代选项。如果退出欧盟，英国在华盛顿的发言权必然会受到削弱。卡梅伦如今意识到，离开了欧盟，英国就得一切都靠自己了。
        　　Decorated war veterans, Messrs Kerry and Hagel are leading members of the talk-first and shoot-only-if-you-have-to school of US foreign policy. They see alliances as multipliers of, rather thanconstraints on, US power. They are not soft. Rather they understand that even a superpowershould think hard about how a war will end before deciding to start one. Iraq and Afghanistanstand as bloody and expensive testimony to the worth of such common sense.
        　　作为荣获过勋章的战争老兵，约翰 克里和查克 哈格尔都是“先谈判，迫不得已才开枪”外交政策思路的主要支持者。他们认为联盟关系能够使美国实力倍增，而不是形成制约。他们绝非立场软弱。相反，他们明白，即便超级大国也要在决定开战之前认真思考战争将如何收场。对于这样的常识，伊拉克和阿富汗战场向我们提供了暴力血腥、代价昂贵的证据。
        　　Mr Hagel has been criticised by some fellow Republicans as allegedly too soft on Iran. Republicanneoconservatives are promising fiery attacks during Senate confirmation hearings. In truth, hiscaution about another war of choice mirrors that of the US military and intelligenceestablishments. Mr Hagel wants negotiations with Tehran. Why not? The US will struggle to make acase for going to war with a country it has not talked to for 30 years. At the very least, you shouldknow your enemy before you bomb it.
        　　一些共和党同僚批评哈格尔在伊朗问题上过于软弱。共和党新保守派誓言将在参议院确认听证会期间展开有力抨击。实际上，他对于又一场“选择之战”的警告与美国军方和情报机构一致。哈格尔希望与伊朗政府谈判。为什么不呢？美国将很难为自己与一个已经30年没有对话的国家交战做出合理解释。至少，你应该在实施轰炸之前了解你的敌人。