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　　Secretary Gates said that as much as he would like to see foreign troops leave Afghanistan, it is impossible to foresee when that might happen.
美国国防部长盖茨表示，尽管从阿富汗撤出外国军队是一个长远目标，但是不可能为撤军规定一个具体日期。
Gates spoke¹ on Tuesday at a joint² news conference at the Pentagon with French Defense³ Minister Herve Morin, who said on Monday that NATO should soon set a date for the start of such a withdrawal⁴.
盖茨是星期二在五角大楼与法国国防部长埃尔韦.莫兰举行的联合记者会上说这番话的。莫兰星期一提出，北约应当迅速确定一个开始撤军的日期。
"I do not see that happening anytime in the near future. And I think it's impossible to put a date on when you might firmly say all the troops are coming out," Gates said.
他说：“我不认为近期能够开始撤军。我想现在不可能确定哪一天你就可以肯定地说，所有的军队都在撤出。”
President Obama recently approved a 45 percent increase in the U.S. troop presence in Afghanistan, to about 55,000. The American commander in Kabul said he will need the troops for the long term to fight the growing insurgency⁵.
奥巴马总统最近批准将美国驻阿富汗部队规模在目前5万5千人的基础上扩大45%。美国在喀布尔的指挥官说，他需要这些部队长期驻守阿富汗，打击日益增多的反叛活动。
At Monday's news conference, French Defense Minister Herve Morin tried to clarify his earlier comments.
法国国防部长莫兰在星期一的记者会上试图澄清他早些时候发表的评论。
Morin said he never called for a withdrawal date, but rather said NATO should stay in Afghanistan as long as necessary, although not forever. He called for specific goals and milestones⁶ along the way in order to demonstrate to Europeans that there is a process in place that eventually will enable their troops to go home.
莫兰表示，他从来没有要求确定一个撤军日期，而是说，只要有需要，北约就应当留在阿富汗，尽管不是永远留在那里。莫兰提出，在这个过程中，应当有具体的目标和阶段性计划，以便向欧洲人表明，事情正在进行当中，他们的部队最终将返回自己的国家。
Secretary Gates has also called for goals in Afghanistan that can be achieved in three to five years. The Obama administration is currently reviewing U.S. policy toward Afghanistan and is expected to announce its plan before the NATO summit next month.
盖茨部长还提出制定3至5年内能够在阿富汗实现的目标。奥巴马政府目前正在审议美国对阿富汗的政策，预计下个月的北约峰会之前会宣布相关计划。
On Monday, Gates indicated that the talk of shorter-term goals in Afghanistan has caused concern among Afghan officials, including Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak, who has been in Washington in recent days.
盖茨星期一说，有关在阿富汗短期目标的会谈引起阿富汗官员的关注，其中包括最近访问华盛顿的阿富汗国防部长瓦尔达克。
"I think that the conversations he had here in Washington last week provided considerable reassurance⁷ to him that nobody was talking about abandoning Afghanistan. But rather, we were trying to come up with shorter-term goals, where we could measure progress. And I think that he was considerably⁸ reassured⁹ by that," he said.
盖茨说：“我想他上星期在华盛顿的会晤中得到了相当肯定的保证，这就是，没人说要抛弃阿富汗。其实，我们是在努力制定一些短期目标，这样我们就能衡量取得的进展。我想，他对此已经很放心了。”
Gates also weighed in on the controversy¹⁰ about the date of Afghanistan's presidential election. The country's election commission set August 20 for the vote, so more U.S. troops will be available to help provide security.
盖茨还提到围绕阿富汗总统选举产生的争论。阿富汗选举委员会将8月20日定为投票日，这样就会有更多的美国军队协助保证安全。
But President Hamid Karzai has called for the election to be held next month. His term expires in May, and his opponents say he cannot stay in office after that.
但是卡尔扎伊总统要求下个月就进行选举。卡尔扎伊的任期到5月，他的反对者说，5月之后，他不能再留任。
Gates endorsed¹¹ the August plan, but said there are concerns about President Karzai's status after May.
盖茨支持8月选举计划，不过他说，有人对卡尔扎伊总统5月之后的地位表示关注。
"I think it's a legitimate¹² concern on the part of President Karzai. And I think the international community as well as the different elements in the Afghan government and parliament are trying to figure out the right way forward here," he said.
盖茨说：“我认为卡尔扎伊总统的担心是合理的。我想国际社会以及阿富汗政府和议会中的各个方面都在努力找到一种正确的方式。”
Gates said Afghan officials are trying to find a way to have a legitimate government between May and August.
盖茨说，阿富汗官员正在努力想办法，使阿富汗在5月至8月期间有一个合法政府。