Israel's new prime minister begins a visit to Washington Sunday for talks with U.S. officials on Israeli-Arab peace prospects and Iran's nuclear program.
以色列新总理星期日开始华盛顿访问之行，他将与美国官员讨论以色列与阿拉伯国家的和平前景以及伊朗核项目。
The thorny issue of Palestinian statehood will top the agenda when hawkish Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sits down with President Barack Obama at the White House. For the first time in years, there are key disagreements between the United States and Israel. Mr. Obama has endorsed a two-state solution as the only way to Middle East peace, but Mr. Netanyahu has not.
棘手的巴勒斯坦建国议题将会成为鹰派总理内塔尼亚胡与奥巴马总统在白宫坐下会谈时的首要议题。多年来第一次，美国与以色列产生主要的意见分歧。奥巴马已经明确表示支持以巴两国共存方案，作为中东和平的唯一途径，然而内塔尼亚胡还没有表示同意。
Israeli spokesman Dan Gillerman:
以色列发言人吉勒曼说：
"I think the Prime Minister is presenting a very realistic and yet pragmatic position," Gillerman said.
“我认为总理代表了一个非常现实而又实际的立场。”
Mr. Netanyahu believes that a Palestinian terror state could develop in the West Bank, similar to what happened when the Islamic militant group Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip. Hamas ousted the Fatah forces of U.S.-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a civil war two years ago. Today, Mr. Abbas heads a more moderate government in the West Bank, but Israel fears he could be toppled by Hamas.
内塔尼亚胡认为，一个巴勒斯坦恐怖主义国家可能在约旦河西岸逐渐发展，就像当时伊斯兰激进组织哈马斯掌控加沙地带的情形一样。在两年前发生在巴勒斯坦的内战中，哈马斯驱逐了美国支持的巴勒斯民族权力机构主席阿巴斯领导的法塔赫武装力量。今天，阿巴斯在约旦河西岸领导着一个比较温和的政府，但以色列担心这个政府可能会被哈马斯推翻。
In addition, Mr. Netanyahu sees Iran as a more pressing issue than the Palestinian track. With the Iranian president threatening to wipe Israel "off the map," he will tell Mr. Obama that Iran must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons.
除此之外，内塔尼亚胡将伊朗看成是一个比巴勒斯坦更紧迫的问题。随着伊朗总统威胁要将以色列在地图上消除，内塔尼亚胡将告诉奥巴马，绝对不能允许伊朗拥有核武器。
Israel has expressed concern over Mr. Obama's plans to negotiate with Iran, saying Teheran would use those talks to buy time while moving closer to nuclear capability. If international sanctions fail, Israel has threatened to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, a move that Washington opposes.
以色列表达对奥巴马同伊朗谈判计划的关切，表示德黑兰将利用这些谈判，以便争取更多时间发展核武器能力。以色列已经发出威胁，如果国际制裁失败，它将袭击伊朗的核武器设施，这一点是华盛顿所反对的。
Playing down the differences, Gillerman says Mr. Netanyahu is confident that the two allies can find common ground.
吉勒曼淡化两国的分歧。他表示，内塔尼亚胡有信心，可以在两个盟国之间找到共同点。
"He sees in that meeting with President Obama a chance for two new leaders, two leaders who were elected when the world is probably at its most dangerous ever, sitting together as friends and allies and finding a way to make this world safer," Gillerman said.
“他将同奥巴马总统的会谈看成是两个新领导人的机会，两位在世界可能是最危险的时刻被选出来的领导人，像朋友和盟国一样坐下来，寻找一条能让世界变得更安全的道路。”
Palestinian officials have warned that unless Mr. Netanyahu endorses the two-state solution, there is no sense in resuming peace talks.
巴勒斯坦官员已经警告，除非内塔尼亚胡支持两国共存方案，否则重新启动和平对话就没有任何意议。 |