U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is appealing to wealthy countries not to cut development aid or resort to protectionist trade practices in the face of the global economic crisis. Rice was the opening speaker at a White House-organized summit on international development.
美国国务卿赖斯呼吁富裕国家不要削减发展援助，也不要在面对全球经济危机时诉诸贸易保护主义的做法。在白宫组织的国际发展峰会上赖斯发表了开幕讲话。
The White House summit was organized in part to highlight foreign aid efforts by the Bush administration, which Rice says collectively amount to the biggest U.S. international development initiative since the post-World War Two Marshall Plan.
组织这次白宫峰会的部分目的是为了强调布什政府所作的对外援助努力。赖斯说，这些援助努力加起来相当于第二次世界大战的马歇尔计划以来美国最大的国际发展项目。
But the proceedings have been overshadowed by the global market and credit crisis and there is deep concern among participants that U.S. and other world development aid will fall victim to crisis-related austerity moves.
但是项目受到全球市场和信贷危机的阴影笼罩。与会者担心美国和其他世界发展援助将受到与危机相关的紧缩行动的制约。
In her opening address, Rice said moves to trim foreign aid and protect home markets are understandable under the circumstances, but in the long run, counterproductive.
赖斯在开幕词中说，削减对外援助和保护国内市场的行动在目前情况下是可以理解的，但是长期看，会产生相反效果。
"When times are hard, as they are now, every nation is focused on protecting its own interests. That is entirely legitimate and it is to be expected. But what we cannot do, what we must not do, is to allow our generosity and our concern for others to fall victim to today's crisis. Reneging on our commitments to the world's poor cannot be an austerity measure," she said.
赖斯说：“当局势艰难的时候，就像现在这样，每个国家会集中在保护自己的利益上。那也是完全合理的，而且是可以预料的。但是让我们把对他人的慷慨和关切受制于今天的危机，这是我们不能做的，我们不允许做的。放弃我们给世界上的穷国的承诺不能成为一种紧缩措施。”
Rice said while recent foreign-aid budgets might now seem unaffordable, the world cannot afford not to come to the aid of poor, weak and poorly governed third-world states that could be sources of regional or global instability.
赖斯说，虽然最近对外援助的预算现在看来无法承受，但是世界不能承受不帮助穷人、弱者和管理混乱的第三世界国家。这些国家可能是地区或全球不稳定的源头。
The secretary also warned of the slide into trade protectionism that economists believe made the economic depression of the 1930s even worse. She said completion of the stalled Doha round of international tariff-cutting negotiations would send a powerful signal that the world's response to the current crisis will be fundamentally different than the past.
赖斯国务卿还对贸易保护主义倾向提出警告。经济学家认为贸易保护主义让1930年代的经济萧条更为严重。她说，完成停滞的多哈回合国际削减关税谈判将发出一个强烈信号，那就是世界对当前危机的反应会和过去有根本的不同。
Rice was followed to the podium by Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who praised U.S. aid to her country following its civil war, and said the world looks to the United States to lead the way out of the current crisis.
在赖斯之后上讲台的是利比里亚总统瑟利夫，她称赞美国在利比里亚内战后对利比里亚的援助。她说，世界指望在美国的带领下走出目前的危机。
"Developing countries will be looking to the United States to step up during these turbulent times and emerge as the true global leader for democracy, stability and expanding economic opportunities for the poor," she said. "Strong global leadership and vision, alongside local country commitment, is needed now more than ever."
瑟利夫说：“发展中国家将指望美国在这动荡时刻期间能够挺住，并且作为全球民主、稳定和为穷国扩大经济机会的领导者。现在比以往更需要坚强的全球领导和视野以及当地国家的承诺。”
The elected Liberian leader said her country is now well on its way to stability and can be a model for a West African region known in the recent past for civil warfare, warlords, child soldiers and so-called blood diamonds.
这名通过选举产生的利比里亚领导人说，利比里亚现在正迈向稳定，利比里亚能够成为西部非洲地区的典范。这个地区最近因为内战、军阀、儿童士兵和所谓血钻石而出名。 |