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奥巴马、罗姆尼外交政策差别不大

As voters in the United States prepare to cast ballots¹ in the presidential election on November 6, people around the globe wonder how the outcome could shape the world.

美国全国各地的选民11月6日星期二投票选举下一届总统。与此同时，全世界其他地方的人们也都在密切关注这次大选，尤其是本次选举的结果将如何影响全球事务。

The presidential candidates offered similar visions of the U.S. role in global affairs during their final debate.

两位总统候选人在最后一次辩论中，对美国在全球事务中应该承担什么样的角色的看法颇为相似。

"America remains² the one indispensable nation. And the world needs a strong America, and it is stronger now than when I came into office," said President Barack Obama.

奥巴马：“美国仍然是个不可或缺的国家，全世界都希望美国强大。与我上台时候相比，现在的美国更加强大了。”

"We recognize that there are places of conflict in the world. We want to end those conflicts to the extent humanly possible. But in order to be able to fulfill³ our role in the world, America must be strong," said Republican challenger, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt⁴ Romney.

罗姆尼：“我们知道，世界上很多地方都在发生冲突，我们希望尽最大的努力结束这些冲突，为了能够承担这样的责任，美国必须强大。”

Defense⁵ spending

The U.S. might look more militaristic under Romney, said Daniel Serwer of the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington.

约翰·霍普金斯大学的丹尼尔·瑟维尔说，罗姆尼统治下的美国可能会更强硬一些。

"He has made it clear that projection⁶ of strength would be a real priority, and one of the fundamental differences between the two candidates is the degree to which they are willing to continue funding defense build-up," said Serwer.

“他已经很明确地表示，加强实力是首要任务，两名候选人之间的一个重要的不同是， 谁更愿意为国防提供更多的资金 。”

Romney has pledged to increase defense spending, if elected. But he agreed with Obama on plans to withdraw U.S. combat troops from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

罗姆尼承诺， 一旦当选，将增加国防开支，不过，他同意奥巴马在2014年底从阿富汗撤出美国战斗部队的计划。

Eye on Iran

They also agree on the use of sanctions to prevent Iran from pursuing a nuclear weapon, and they say military strikes remain an option to counter that threat. Both have pledged to support Israel if it is attacked.

两人在通过制裁手段迫使伊朗放弃核武器计划方面也是一致的。他们还表示，不排除使用武力对付核武威胁的可能。两人都承诺，一旦以色列遭到袭击，将对其提供支持。

Romney has said, if elected, his first foreign trip would be to Israel. He suggested Obama has alienated⁷ the Jewish state.

罗姆尼还说，一旦当选，他出访的第一个国家便是以色列。他还暗示，奥巴马疏离了这个犹太人的国家。

"You went to the Middle East, and you flew to Egypt and to Saudi Arabia and to Turkey and Iraq. And by the way, you skipped Israel, our closest friend in the region," said Romney.

罗姆尼：“你出访中东，你飞到埃及、沙特阿拉伯、土耳其和伊拉克。顺便提一句，你绕过了我们在中东最亲密的朋友以色列。”

Obama countered that the debate was on the eve of the largest U.S. and Israeli military exercise in history.

奥巴马反驳说，辩论的第二天，美国和以色列即将举行历史上规模最大的军演。

Overall, the candidates offer similar foreign policy proposals, said analyst⁸ Serwer.

分析人士说，总的来说，两位候选人在外交政策方面的看法没有太大的差别。

"Beyond rhetoric⁹, I think the major difference is on this question of arms to the Syrian rebels," said Serwer.

霍普金斯大学的丹尼尔·瑟维尔说：“除了言论上的不同之外，最大分歧是有关向叙利亚的反政府武装提供武器的问题。”

Syria conflict

Syrian security forces and opposition¹⁰ fighters have battled since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began in March of 2011. Romney favors providing weapons to the rebels.

自2011年3月叙利亚爆发反对总统阿萨德的起义以来，叙利亚安全部队与反政府武装人员就不断交战。罗姆尼赞成向反政府人员提供武器，他说：

"I want to make sure they get armed and they have the arms necessary to defend themselves, but also to remove Assad. But I do not want to see a military involvement on the part of our troops," said Romney.

“我希望确保他们得到武装，使他们不但拥有必要的武器来自卫，也足以推翻阿萨德。不过，我不希望看到我们自己的部队在军事上有任何的卷入。”

Obama offers a more cautious response.

在叙利亚问题上，奥巴马总统显得更为谨慎：

"For us to get more entangled¹¹ militarily in Syria is a serious step, and we have to do so making absolutely certain that we know who we are helping¹²; that we are not putting arms in the hands of folks who eventually could turn them against us or allies in the region," said Obama.

“在叙利亚问题上，我们在军事上更多地卷入是很严肃的一步。我们必须在很确定帮助的对象后才能这么做。我们不能够将武器交到那些最后可能调转武器对准我们或是我们在该地区的盟友的人手里。”

Looking East

Obama, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, will have a personal mission if he is re-elected, said political analyst Robert Guttman.

"He will be looking for his legacy¹³. It may not be [peace in] the Middle East; it may be better relations with China, but it will be something," said Guttman.

China is on Romney's mind. He said he would designate China a "currency manipulator," a label that could lead to sanctions. The Republican candidate's corporate¹⁴ background could influence his leadership, said Guttman.

"He wants to expand American business. I think he would be a president more involved with trade matters, more involved with business," said Guttman.

“他希望为美国拓展商机。我认为，他应该是个更多参与贸易和商业的总统。”

Analysts¹⁵ say voters are more concerned with domestic issues, such as the economy, than foreign policy plans.

分析人士说，相对于外交政策来说，美国选民们更关注国内话题，比方说，经济问题。