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　　U.S. and Russian negotiators are continuing talks in an effort to agree on a new follow-on treaty to the 1991 START-One pact¹ that expired Saturday, December 5. Both sides say an agreement is more likely at the end of the month.

　　美国与俄罗斯谈判官员还在努力协商，希望达成一项取代星期六到期的1991年削减战略武器条约的新协议。美俄双方都表示，新协议可望在这个月底达成。

　　The START-One agreement is one of the most complex treaties in history dealing² with reducing nuclear weapons. It was signed in 1991 by U.S. President George Herbert Walker Bush and Soviet³ President Mikhail Gorbachev. It came into force in 1994.

　　第一阶段削减战略武器条约是有史以来处理核武削减问题最复杂的条约之一。条约是在1991年由当时的美国老布什总统以及俄罗斯总统戈尔巴乔夫签订，从1994年开始生效。

　　Daryl Kimball, Executive Director of the Arms Control Association, a private research firm, says that treaty helped end the Cold War.

　　金伯尔是私人研究机构“武器控制协会”的执行主任。他说，这项条约帮助结束了冷战时期。

　　"It slashed⁴ U.S. and Russian strategic nuclear forces from 1990 levels of about 10,000 deployed⁵ strategic warheads each down to approximately 6,000 by the year 2001," said Kimball. "And it also established a far-reaching network and system of on-site inspections⁷, verification provisions, information exchanges to provide each side with high confidence that the other was complying with the terms of the treaty."

　　他说，“条约要求美俄两国将1990年战略核武系统中各自部署的一万枚核弹头，削减到2001年的大约6千枚。条约同时确立了一套影响深远的网络系统，包括现场检查、提供核查以及信息交流，好让两国对另一方是否落实条约抱持良好互信。”

　　Frank Miller⁸, a former senior official on the National Security Council under President George W. Bush says those verification provisions are crucial.

　　在前总统布什任内担任国家安全会议资深官员的法兰克·米勒说，这些核查系统至关重要。

　　"It's important to have confidence. It's important to have on the ground inspections which this treaty provisions call for," said Miller. "It's important to have exchanges of telemetric data. So in addition to what each side's own intelligence services are able to pick up, the treaty provides additional information which has always been seen as being of great confidence-building value."

　　米勒说，“双方互信是很重要的。条约中要求的现场检查，以及交换遥测数据信息都是至关重要的。所以除了两国自己的情报单位获取的信息，条约还提供额外的信息，这对建立双边互信有极大的价值。”

　　Daryl Kimball says since the START-One treaty was signed, the United States and Russia have slashed their strategic nuclear arsenals⁹ even more.

　　金伯尔说，自从第一阶段削减战略武器条约签署以来，美俄两国裁减了更多的战略核武器。

　　"Today, the United States deploys¹⁰ approximately 2,200 strategic warheads on approximately 800 strategic nuclear delivery vehicles, which is the jargon¹¹ for the missiles and the bombers¹² with long ranges," added Kimball. "Russia deploys somewhere slightly above 2,200 strategic warheads today on a smaller number of strategic delivery vehicles estimated to be around 620. So both sides have gone well below the original START-One ceilings for their nuclear forces."

　　他说，“今天美国部署了大约2200枚核弹头，在大约800个战略核武运载器上，也就是我们所知的导弹和长程轰炸机。俄罗斯方面也大约有2200枚核弹头，至于运载器，要比美国稍微少一些，大约是620个。所以双方的裁军程度都比第一阶段削减战略武器条约要求的还要大。”

　　Last July President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart, Dmitri Medvedev, agreed to work on a follow-on treaty to START-One.

　　今年7月，美国总统奥巴马与俄罗斯总统梅德韦杰夫同意，两国将着手进行新协议。

　　"The new treaty that the U.S. and Russia are now negotiating would drop these levels even lower to somewhere between 1,500 and 1,675 deployed strategic warheads and somewhere probably below 800 strategic nuclear delivery systems," continued Kimball.

　　他说，“美俄两国现在商讨的新协议将把目前的核弹头数量减少到1500到1650枚，至于战略核武运载器将减少到800个以下。”

　　The two sides were hoping to get a new treaty in place by December 5 - the date of START-One's expiration¹³. But now Russian and American officials say they are aiming for the end of the year.

　　美俄两国原本希望在12月5号，第一阶段削减战略武器条约到期的当天，可以达成新协议。但是现在两国官员表示他们把目标放在今年年底。

　　Frank Miller says Washington and Moscow have to bridge several differences.

　　米勒表示，华盛顿与莫斯科还有一些分歧要解决。

　　"There are two sets of issues," said Miller. "One relating to the numbers of warheads and launchers that each side would be allowed under the treaty - there are some differences between the two sides. And the Russian side is objecting to many of the inspection⁶ provisions of the old treaty."

　　他说，“双方之间存在两个问题，第一个是有关新条约允许各自拥有的核弹头与运载器数量，两国对此有不同意见。第二点就是俄罗斯认为，旧条约中对检查的要求太多。”

　　Miller says Moscow wants to have less intrusive¹⁴ verification procedures put into the follow-on START-One treaty whereas Washington wants stronger measures.

　　米勒表示，莫斯科希望在新条约中放进比较不具有侵入性的检查要求，但是美方希望采取较严格的措施。

　　Analysts¹⁵ say whenever the two sides agree on a new treaty, that pact must still be ratified¹⁶ by the U.S. Senate and the Russian Parliament - or Duma. And that process, say experts, may take months.

　　分析人士说，不管两国在什么时候达成新协议，这个新协议必须由美国参议院和俄罗斯国家杜马批准后才能生效，而批准过程可能要花上好几个月。