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　　The United States is sending a high-profile delegation¹ to a key security conference that opened in Munich, Germany Friday, marking a new page in transatlantic relations under the Obama administration.
美国派遣一个级别很高的代表团前往德国慕尼黑参加星期五在那里开始的一个重要安全会议。这标志着奥巴马政府翻开了大西洋两岸关系的新篇章。
The conference, which runs from Friday through Sunday, is likely to tackle a number of key issues - from Afghanistan and the Middle East, to energy security, the Russia-Georgia conflict last year and U.S. missile defense² plans in Eastern Europe.
这次安全会议在星期五和星期六召开，可能会讨论许多重要议题，包括阿富汗和中东局势、能源安全、去年俄罗斯和格鲁吉亚发生的冲突、以及美国在东欧部署导弹防御体系的计划等。
Some heavy hitters are expected to attend, including French President Nicolas Sarkozy, German Chancellor³ Angela Merkel, Afghan President Hamid Karzai and NATO head Jaap de Hoop⁴ Scheffer. The Obama administration is also sending a high-ranking delegation headed by Vice⁵ President Joseph Biden.
预计一些很有影响力的政界人物将出席会议，包括法国总统萨科齐、德国总理默克尔、阿富汗总统卡尔扎伊和北约秘书长夏侯雅伯。奥巴马政府将派副总统拜登率高级代表团出席这次会议。
Experts read this as signalling Washington wants to open a new page in transatlantic relations. Nick Witney, the former head of the European Defense Agency in Paris, says the Munich meeting is one marker ahead of an April NATO summit in France and Germany, in which President Obama is expected to attend.
有关专家认为，美国这么做意味着华盛顿希望开创新的大西洋两岸关系。欧洲防务局前负责人惠特尼在巴黎表示，慕尼黑会议是今年4月在法国和德国召开的北约首脑会议的前奏，预计奥巴马总统会亲自出席4月的首脑会议。
"This is going to be a pretty momentous⁶ event," he said. "It will be the first Obama trip to Europe. It'll also be the occasion for France coming back into NATO after a 43-year absence. So that event is very much dominating the horizon at the moment.
他说：“这将是一次颇具历史意义的会议。这将是奥巴马当选后第一次去欧洲，也将是法国在缺席43年后重返北约的契机。所以，这一会议目前是人们最为关注的。”
Analysts⁷ believe the Munich conference will be an occasion for Washington to seek more European assistance in securing peace in the Middle East - and fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan.
分析人士认为，美国将在慕尼黑会议上寻求欧洲国家为确保中东和平和打击阿富汗塔利班提供更多的帮助。
"I think we've had plenty of signals already from the Obama administration that they do want to reengage with the Europeans as serious international security partners," Witney said. "There is another side to that, of course, which Obama has made explicitly⁸ clear: He's naturally only going to take Europeans seriously if the Europeans take themselves seriously and are prepared to pull their weight in dealing⁹ with international security problems - the first of which of course is Afghanistan.
惠特尼说：“我认为，奥巴马政府已经多次发出信号，表示希望重新将欧洲作为美国重要的国际安全伙伴。当然，问题还有另外一面，奥巴马也非常清楚地表明，那就是：只有当欧洲国家认真地负起责任，准备在处理国际安全问题中发挥重要作用时，奥巴马才会把欧洲当作重要的伙伴。而这些国际问题中首先需要解决的当然是阿富汗问题。”
Iran's nuclear program is another critical issue - and the Obama administration has signalled it is willing to talk directly with Tehran. But Iranian parliamentary speaker Ali Larijani, who is expected in Munich, has ruled out any talks with U.S. officials there.
伊朗的核项目是另一个关键议题，奥巴马政府已经表示愿意直接同伊朗会谈。但是，预计将出席慕尼黑安全会议的伊朗议长拉里贾尼表示，不会同美国官员在会议期间展开任何会谈。