U.S. President Barack Obama says he is seeking a new chapter in American relations with the Muslim world. Mr. Obama stressed the importance of ongoing dialogue as he wrapped up a visit to Turkey.
美国总统奥巴马说，他正在寻求美国和穆斯林世界关系的新篇章。奥巴马在结束对土耳其的访问之前，强调了继续对话的重要性。
The president ended his first overseas trip in office by reaching out to Muslim youth in Turkey and elsewhere.
奥巴马总统在结束他就任后首次海外之行前，和土耳其以及其他地区的穆斯林青年进行了交流。
At a cultural center in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, Mr. Obama took part in a question and answer session with about 100 students.
在土耳其最大城市伊斯坦布尔的一个文化中心，奥巴马和大约100名学生进行了问答交流。
He said he wants to launch a dialogue not just with them, but with the wider Muslim world.
奥巴马说，他希望不仅仅只是和这些青年交流，还要和穆斯林世界进行更为广泛的对话。
"… and I want you to know that I am personally committed to a new chapter of American engagement," he said. "We can't afford to talk past one another and focus only on our differences or to let walls of mistrust go up around us."
奥巴马说：“我希望你们了解，我个人会致力于揭开美国同世界交往的新篇章。我们不能各说各话，只是强调我们之间的差异，在我们周围竖起不信任的壁垒。”
The president said simple exchanges can break down those walls. And, he started by speaking candidly with the young people in the room.
总统说，简单的交流就能够推翻这样的壁垒。他一开始，就对这些年轻人进行了坦率的演讲。
Trying to end the session before the afternoon Muslim call to prayer, he said there are many people outside of the United States that think of Americans only as selfish and crass. He said that is not the country he loves. And, he pointed to his own election as a sign that the nation is moving forward.
他试图在下午穆斯林宣礼前结束讨论。他说，在美国以外，有很多人认为美国人就是自私和粗鲁的。他说，那不是他所热爱的国家的形象。他还表示，他自己的竞选已经显示出这个国家在向前迈进。
"I think people saw my election as proof, as testimony that, although we are imperfect, our society has continued to improve," he said.
他说：“我认为，人们将我的选举视作为一种印证，或者宣示，就是说，尽管我们不完美，我们的社会还是在不断地改善。”
Mr. Obama was asked if he really represents a change from the previous administration and if there is a new face at the White House, but the same old policies remain.
奥巴马被问及，他是否真正代表有别于前任政府的改变，还是说白宫里只是有了一张新面孔，而过往的政策却依然未变。
He said it takes time to move the ship of state and dramatic changes in foreign policy do not necessarily come overnight. But he spoke of his determination to end the war in Iraq and seek an international agreement on climate change as breaks with the past.
奥巴马说，政府的改变需要时间，外交政策不见得会在一夜之间发生显著变化。可是，他谈到自己决心结束伊拉克战争，并且寻求在气候变化问题上达成一项国际协议，把这些作为与以往做法的决裂。
Mr. Obama has already announced changes in the way America treats terror detainees. But he said in Turkey that he will not relent in the ongoing effort to destroy al-Qaida.
奥巴马已宣布美国在对待被关押的恐怖分子方式上的改变。不过他在土耳其说，在摧毁基地组织问题上他不会放松正在做出的努力。
"I don't make any apologies for continuing the effort to prevent bombs going off or planes going into buildings that would kill innocents," he said. "I don't think any society can justify that."
他说：“我对我们正在进行的努力不做任何道歉，因为我们的努力是为了防止炸弹爆炸以及飞机撞楼这些伤及无辜的行径。我不认为任何社会能够证明这些行动是正当的。”
The president also used the opportunity to discuss the one issue that perhaps more than any other has shaped American ties with the Muslim world over the course of decades. Long before the Iraq war frayed relations, there were tensions over the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.
奥巴马总统还利用这一机会讨论了另一个问题，在决定美国与穆斯林世界关系的发展方向上，这个问题可能比任何其他问题更重要。在伊拉克战争损害美国与穆斯林世界的关系很早之前，双方就在以色列和巴勒斯坦的和平进程问题上出现了紧张。
Speaking just days after a new hardline conservative government took power in Israel, Mr. Obama stressed the need for compromise on all sides.
在以色列新的强硬派保守政府掌权数天之后，奥巴马强调，所有各方都需要做出妥协。
"I think we have a sense of what those compromises should be and will be," he said. "Now, what we need is political will and courage on the part of leadership."
他说：“我认为，我们都能感觉出来那些妥协应当是什么和将会是什么。现在，我们需要的就是领导层要有政治意愿和勇气。”
The gathering with students was the final event of an eight-day tour that White House officials consider enormously productive.
与学生进行的这次聚会是奥巴马8天海外之行的最后一次活动，白宫官员认为奥巴马此行取得了极大的收获。
The president's top advisor, David Axelrod, says Mr. Obama moved to restore trust and mend frayed ties throughout his travels. He says it may take a while to see specific results. But he stresses the president's discussions abroad helped establish a basis for trust and understanding.
"There will be a harvest that will come at different times and in different ways, but the seeds were planted and that was the goal of this trip," he said.
The trip began with the G20 emergency economic summit in London, followed by a gathering of NATO members on the French-German border and a meeting with European Union leaders in Prague. It ended in Turkey, where Mr. Obama continued his outreach to the Muslim world and sought to repair bilateral ties frayed by the Iraq War. |