As hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign aid come pouring into Pakistan to help with the flooding crisis, Islamabad has accepted a pledge from an unlikely source, longtime rival India.
就在数亿美元外国援助大量涌入巴基斯坦，帮助这个国家应对洪水灾害的时候，伊斯兰堡意外收到来自来长期对手印度的援助承诺。
Officials with the United Nations in Pakistan announced Saturday that they have received nearly 70 percent of the $460 million aid appeal for the country's flood disaster.
在巴基斯坦的联合国官员星期六宣布，他们收到了4亿6千万洪水救灾援助请求中的将近70%。
Nearly a month into the flood crisis, this total includes India's recent offer of $5 million to help with the relief effort.
这是巴基斯坦遭受洪灾近一个月来国际承诺的援助金额其中包括印度最近提出的500万美元洪灾救助承诺。
India's permanent representative to the United Nations Hardeep Singh Puri addressed the organization's General Assembly Friday after Pakistan accepted the pledge.
印度常驻联合国代表哈迪普·辛格·普里在巴基斯坦接受印方援助承诺之后星期五在联合国大会上发表讲话。
"We are willing to do all that is in our power to assist Pakistan in facing the consequences of floods," said Puri. "We extend our wholehearted support to the government of Pakistan in its efforts for relief and rehabilitation of the adversely affected population."
普里说：“我们愿意尽一切所能协助巴基斯坦应对洪水带来的灾难。我们真诚的支持正在进行灾难救助、帮助灾民灾后恢复的巴基斯坦政府。”
Aside from the fact that the neighboring nuclear powers have fought three wars, Pakistani analysts say this offer of aid comes at a particularly sensitive time in relations between the two countries.
巴基斯坦分析人士说，除了这两个拥有核武器的邻国打了3场战争之外，印度提出援助巴基斯坦正值两国关系处在特别敏感的时刻。
Within the past two months, there have been several border skirmishes between their armies with some casualties reported on either side.
过去两个月内，两国军队发生了几次小规模的边界冲突，据报道双方都有人员伤亡。
In July, India's Home Secretary G.K. Pillai accused Pakistan's military intelligence agency of playing a significant role in the planning of 2008's Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people. The accusation came a day before Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna visited his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi in Islamabad. Subsequently, the accusation overshadowed the talks.
印度内政部长皮莱7月指责巴基斯坦军方情报机构在策划2008年孟买袭击事件中发挥了重要作用，166人在那次事件中被打死。皮莱指责巴基斯坦军方的前一天，印度外交部长克里希纳在伊斯兰堡拜会了巴基斯坦外长沙阿·马哈茂德·库雷希。结果是，皮莱的指责为那次会谈蒙上阴影。
International relations expert Ishtiaq Ahmad from Quaid-i-Azam University in Islamabad says he believes the worldwide focus on Pakistan's flooding might have influenced India to offer aid to its longtime rival.
伊斯兰堡喀伊德·阿萨姆大学国际关系专家艾哈迈德说，他认为全世界都把注意力放在巴基斯坦洪灾上，这或许对印度提出援助这个长期的敌对国家有影响。
"The Indians might have been facing a big dilemma because the whole world is out there," said Ahmad. "So they would have been an odd man out, you know, in a situation when everyone is coming. Even Afghanistan has offered $1 million."
艾哈迈德说：“全世界都在关注巴基斯坦，这或许让印度人进退两难。因此你们知道，大家都来帮助我们，在这种形势下他们要不那么做，就成了异类。连阿富汗还拿出了100万美元。”
Riffat Hussain with Quaid-i-Azam University's Department of Peace and Conflict Studies says the issue of exchanging humanitarian aid between the two countries always has been politically sensitive.
喀伊德·阿萨姆大学和平与冲突学系里法特·侯赛因认为，巴基斯坦和印度两国相互提供人道援助在政治上一贯敏感。
He points to the fact Pakistan spurned India's offer to fly helicopters for relief efforts after the 2005 earthquake in the northern part of the country.
他提到，巴基斯坦北部2005年发生地震之后，巴基斯坦拒绝了印度提出用直升机参与救助的表示。
He also says India itself has declined Pakistani assistance in the past.
里法特·侯赛因还说，印度也拒绝过巴基斯坦的援助。
"There was an earthquake that had hit Gujarat about a decade ago, and Pakistan had offered humanitarian relief assistance to India and the Indian government had turned it down," said Hussain. "So there is whole history of offers being made and spurned by the different sides."
他说：“大约10年前古吉拉特发生地震，巴基斯坦向印度提出向地震灾区提供人道援助，被印度政府拒绝了。所以，过去两国之间都有过提出帮助被对方拒绝的例子。”
He says he believes India's $5 million pledge is a delicate diplomatic maneuver, especially as compared to the tens of millions of dollars other countries are providing and Pakistan's enormous need for assistance.
侯赛因说，他认为印度承诺的500万美元援助只不过是经过仔细推敲的外交策略，特别跟其他国家提供成百上千万美元以及巴基斯坦的巨大需要相比更是如此。
"It's like a drop in the ocean, not even in the bucket," added Hussain. "So therefore, I think they are sending a message not only to the international community but also to Pakistan that India means well."
侯赛因说：“这就像是沧海一粟，杯水车薪。因此我认为，他们不仅是在向国际社会也是向巴基斯坦传递一个信息，印度是出于好心。”
From Lahore, international relations analyst Rasool Baksh Rais agrees with Hussain that the pledge largely is symbolic. But he says some elements within Pakistan will not take kindly to the sum, especially considering India's economy is much larger than Pakistan's.
国际关系分析人士拉苏尔·巴克什·赖斯跟侯赛因的看法一样，认为印度的援助承诺具是象征性的。不过他说，巴基斯坦内部的有些人对印度的这笔援助不会做出善意的解读，特别考虑到印度的经济规模比巴基斯坦大得多时。
"It is also a kind of insult to injury that you are acting like a regional hegemony and look at the growth of your economy," said Rais.
赖斯说：“印度的做法像是个地区霸主，再看看你们的经济增长率，因此他们是伤害加侮辱。”
He says Islamabad's acceptance of the aid could put pressure on the civilian government, as it fights growing criticism from flood victims that they have not received enough aid.
赖斯说，伊斯兰堡接受印度援助可能给这个文职政府施加了压力，因为政府正在为灾民的批评进行辩解，有越来越多的灾民批评政府，说他们没有接到足够的援助。
"There has been even much critique from certain opposition forces that why we cannot mobilize the national resources; they can be more than enough to meet the challenge that we are facing," added Rais. "Why accept aid?"
他说：“某些反对派力量提出了许多批评，说我们为什么不能举全国之力来救灾？如果我们能这样做，那么，我们就足以应对目前我们所面临的局面。”
Regardless of the source and size of the aid, analysts agree that every little bit will help as rains continue to soak a country seeking to emerge from the area's worst flooding in more than 80 years.
姑且不论援助的来源和数量，分析人士都人认为，巴基斯坦遭到了80年来最大的洪灾，整个国家都在努力抗洪救灾，而大雨还在不住地下，因此，任何微小的帮助，都能起到一定的效果。 |