The U.S. Senate has approved a $91 billion package that will continue funding the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and provide assistance to Pakistan by a vote 86-3 late Thursday. The measure will have to be reconciled with a House-passed version before a final bill is sent to President Barack Obama for his signature.
美国国会参议院以86票对3票的表决结果批准了总额913亿美元的补充性战争开支法案，用于支付在阿富汗、伊拉克的军事行动以及对巴基斯坦的援助。在送交总统签字之前，参议院的法案还必须和众议院的战争开支法案进行协调。
Most of the funds are to help pay for continued U.S. military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some $400 million are to go toward training Pakistan's counterinsurgency forces, while $500 million are to be spent on economic aid to Pakistan.
这一法案中的大部分款项将用于维持美军在伊拉克和阿富汗的军事行动。在对巴基斯坦项目的拨款方面，大约四亿美元用于培训巴基斯坦打击叛乱武装的部队，五亿美元用于对巴基斯坦的经济援助。
The bill also includes funding for peacekeeping operations in Somalia, security programs along the U.S.-Mexico border and for the global fight against AIDS.
此外，法案还包括了对索马里维和行动、美国-墨西哥边境安全以及全球防治艾滋病等项目的拨款。
Senator Inouye praises bill
The chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Democratic Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii, praised the bill.
参议员拨款委员会主席，来自夏威夷的民主党参议员丹尼尔.井上说：
"This is a good bill, and it is necessary to deal with a myriad of problems," he said.
“这是一个出色的法案，对处理大量的各种问题来说是十分必要的。”
But the measure does not contain everything President Obama had wanted.
但是这一法案中并没有包括所有奥巴马总统所希望得到的拨款。
Money to close Guantanamo withdrawn
The Senate earlier this week followed the lead of the House of Representatives and took out $80 million to close the U.S. detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Lawmakers argued that it was premature to fund the closure before a plan was established on what to do with the 240 detainees housed there.
象前几天众议院的法案一样，参议院也拒绝为关闭古巴关塔那摩拘留中心拨款。议员们认为，应该首先就如何处理仍被拘禁在那里的240名在押人员制定出一个计划，然后在为关闭该中心拨款。
Earlier Thursday, the Senate approved a $100 billion U.S. line of credit to the International Monetary Fund, rejecting a Republican-sponsored amendment to remove the commitment from the bill. The IMF could use the line of credit to shore up the ability of countries to cope with financial crises.
星期四早些时候，参议院还批准为国际货币基金组织提供一亿美元的信用贷款。此前，有共和党议员提出将该条款从国防法案中剔除。国际货币基金组织将用这笔资金援助一些新兴市场经济应对金融危机。
Kerry supports IMF provision
Senator John Kerry, a Massachusetts Democrat and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, spoke in support of the IMF provision.
麻萨诸塞州民主党参议员、国际关系委员会主席克里支持为国际货币基金组织注资。
"The fact is that if those emerging markets start to fade, not only do we lose the economic upside of those markets, but we also run the risk that governments fail," Kerry said.
他说：“如果一些新兴市场经济国家失败了的话，我们不但会失去经济上的利益，而且还将面临这些国家的政府垮台的危险。”
The House and Senate will be in recess next week, but negotiators for both chambers are expected to reach a compromise on the legislation soon after lawmakers return in early June.
国会下星期休会，但预计在六月初参众两院复会后不久，两院的谈判人员将会很快就两院法案的不同版本达成妥协。 |