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　　U.S. President-elect Barack Obama has reaffirmed his intention to withdraw American combat forces from Iraq after taking office. Mr. Obama spoke¹ as a top member of the Bush administration admitted that U.S. efforts to stabilize² Iraq after the 2003 invasion were lacking.
美国当选总统奥巴马重申了他就职后将从伊拉克撤出美国作战部队的意向。与此同时，布什政府的一名高级官员承认，美国2003年入侵伊拉克以后，没有足够的力量来稳定伊拉克。
While campaigning for the presidency³, Barack Obama's most often repeated pledge was to bring home American combat forces from Iraq within 16 months of entering the White House.
在总统竞选期间，奥巴马重复最多的保证就是在入主白宫后的16个月内，把美国作战部队撤出伊拉克，返回美国。
Since the election, the United States and Iraq have finalized⁴ an accord that stipulates⁵ a 2011 deadline for withdrawing U.S. troops.
选举结束后，美国和伊拉克达成了一项协议，规定2011年是美军撤离伊拉克的截止期。
Speaking on NBC television's Meet The Press program, Mr. Obama said he remains⁶ committed to ending the Iraq War, although he gave no specific dates for doing so.
星期天在接受美国全国广播公司“与媒体会面”电视节目采访的时候，奥巴马说，他仍然致力于结束伊拉克战争，但是他并没有说出一个具体的日期。
"One of my first acts as president will be to bring in the Joint⁷ Chiefs of Staff, to bring in my national security team, and design a plan for a responsible drawdown," said Barack Obama. "When I began the campaign, there was a lot of controversy⁸ about the idea of starting to draw down troops. Now, we have seen this administration sign an agreement with the Iraqi government, creating a timeframe for removing U.S. troops."
奥巴马说：“作为总统，我首先要做的事情之一就是召集参谋长联席会议和我的国家安全团队，来为撤军制定一个负责任的计划。当我开始竞选总统的时候，人们对开始减少驻军存在很大争议。现在，我们看到现任政府和伊拉克政府签署了一项协议，从而为撤军制定出一个时间表。”
The president-elect, who opposed the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq while serving as an Illinois state senator, said he wants to act quickly but also to preserve stability in Iraq. He said there must be a mechanism⁹ for Iraq to assume more responsibility for its security without allowing a resurgence¹⁰ of terrorism in the country.
作为来自伊利诺伊州参议员，当选总统奥巴马2003年曾反对美国领导的对伊拉克的入侵。奥巴马表示，他希望尽快从伊拉克撤军，同时也要维护伊拉克的稳定。他说，必须为伊拉克承担维护本国安全的责任制定一项机制，防止恐怖主义在伊拉克卷土重来。
In a recent interview, President Bush said the greatest regret of his presidency was the intelligence failure that led the United States to believe that Saddam Hussein possessed¹¹ weapons of mass destruction. In the past, Mr. Bush has admitted that mistakes were made in attempting to secure the country after the Iraqi ruler's ouster.
在最近的一次采访中，布什总统表示，他任期内最大的遗憾是，情报工作的失误导致美国认为萨达姆.侯赛因拥有大规模杀伤性武器。过去，布什曾经承认，在推翻萨达姆之后试图稳定伊拉克的过程中犯了错误。
Speaking on the Fox News Sunday television program, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the structure of America's presence in Iraq was not up to the task of helping¹² to forge a democracy while maintaining security in the face of a violent insurgency¹³.
Rice was asked whether former Defense¹⁴ Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, who played a key role in deciding U.S. troop levels in Iraq after the invasion, bore the blame.
在节目中，赖斯被询问在决定美军驻伊部队水平问题上发挥关键作用的前国防部长拉姆斯菲尔德是否应当对此负责。
"Look, I take responsibility for that, too," said Condoleezza Rice. "We just did not have the right structure."
赖斯回答说：“我也要对此负责。我们当时并没有制定出正确的结构。”
At the same time, Rice said she believes that, in the long run, the overthrow¹⁵ of Saddam Hussein will prove to be what she termed "a strategic achievement" for America. She said Iraq will be at the core of what she described as "a different kind of Middle East".
赖斯同时表示，从长远来看，推翻萨达姆政权对美国来说是一项“战略成就”。她说，伊拉克将成为“一个截然不同的中东”的核心。