U.S. President George Bush is in Italy for talks with Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi Thursday and a meeting with Pope Benedict Friday.
美国总统布什星期四在罗马和意大利总理贝卢斯科尼会谈，星期五将会见教皇本笃十六世。
Once again, Iran is likely to play a prominent role in the president's discussions on what has been called his farewell tour of Western Europe.
布什总统这次被称之为告别访问的西欧之行很可能仍然要以伊朗问题为主要议题。
Italy has been pushing to become part of a group of negotiators with Iran that includes the five permanent U.N. Security Council members plus Germany.
意大利一直在努力加入联合国安理会五个常任理事国和德国组成的对伊朗谈判的团体中来。
White House officials say they will listen to what Italy's leaders have to say, but say the German government insists the current format should stay. They also note that Italy has a trading relationship with Iran, and will be a key player if and when the time comes to increase sanctions on Tehran.
白宫官员说， 他们要听取意大利领导人的观点，但是又说，德国政府坚持要保持目前的谈判结构。白宫官员还指出，意大利和伊朗有贸易关系，如果对德黑兰加大制裁的时机来临，意大利将扮演关键角色。
On Wednesday, Mr. Bush discussed different aspects of the Iran crisis with German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
星期三布什总统和德国总理默克尔从不同角度讨论了伊朗危机。
Speaking to reporters after their talks at a castle just outside Berlin, the president stressed he wants to see a peaceful resolution of the dispute over Iran's nuclear intentions. But he made clear the use of military force remains a last resort.
在柏林郊外的一座城堡结束会谈以后，布什总统在记者会上强调说，他希望看到围绕伊朗核意图的争论得到和平解决 。不过布什明确表示，仍然会把军事力量作为最后万不得已的手段。
"I told the chancellor my first choice, of course, is to solve this diplomatically," said President Bush. "All options are on the table. But the first choice is to solve this problem by working closely together, by sending a dual message, which has been the consistent policy of this administration, that if you verifiably suspend your enrichment programs you'll end your isolation, and there's a way forward for you."
布什说：“我告诉默克尔总理我的第一个选择，当然是以外交手段解决。所有的选择都在谈判桌上。但是第一个选择是通过密切接触和努力来解决问题，通过释放双重信息，这也是本届政府一贯坚持的政策，也就是说，如果伊朗能证明停止你的浓缩项目，就会结束孤立状态，前方就有了出路。”
At the session with reporters, the president was also asked if he regrets his decision to invade Iraq. He said no, but repeated the comments quoted in a British newspaper - that he wishes he had chosen his words more carefully when making the case for war.
在记者会上，布什总统被问到是否对攻打伊拉克的决定感到后悔，布什说他不后悔，但是他重复了英国报纸引用他的话以后表示，对伊拉克战争打响之前，他讲话本应更谨慎。
"I don't regret it at all. said President Bush. "Removing Saddam Hussein made the world a safer place. And yes, I told the guy -- the guy said, now what could you do over? First of all, you don't get to do things over in my line of work. But I could have used better rhetoric."
他说：“我一点都不后悔，除掉萨达姆.侯塞因使得世界更加安全了。那个记者问我，如果能重作一次，你会怎样作？首先，作为总统，我不能把事情重作一遍。不过我或许应该选择更好的措辞。”
The Iraq war has been very unpopular here in Italy, and there have been demonstrations against President Bush every time he has visited Rome since the conflict began. Anti-war protesters have announced plans to take to the streets during his current stay, and 10,000 extra police are on duty throughout the Italian capital.
伊拉克战争在意大利非常不得人心，战争开始以来，布什总统每次访问罗马都会引发反对他的示威游行。反战人士已经宣布在这次布什访问期间走上街头，意大利首都各处的街道增加了一万名警察执勤。 |