PBS高端访谈:外交官员谈英国新任首相特雷莎·梅

 　　GWEN IFILL: Joining me now to discuss today's historic events and this remarkable¹ time in the U.K. is Sir Peter Westmacott, a longtime diplomat² in the British Foreign Service. He left his post as British ambassador to the U.S. earlier this year, and served before that as ambassador to France and Turkey.

　　Mr. Ambassador, welcome.

　　It's been a head-spinning day, a head-spinning time. How are things now doing in Britain? What can you tell us about Britain now?

　　SIR PETER WESTMACOTT, Former Ambassador, United Kingdom: Well, it's good to be with you again.

　　I think we're all still a bit shell-shocked, but I think the main change that's happened in the less than three weeks, can you believe it, since the referendum is that even those people who thought it was the wrong outcome and felt that the campaign to leave the European Union was based on a lot of misrepresentation and fraudulent facts and so on, everybody has more or less come to terms with the fact that this is going to happen, the negotiations⁴ are going to begin, even if many of us believe that, at some point before the deed is done, the British people will need to be consulted again, either in a general election or in another referendum and so on.

　　But, meanwhile, the political drama has accelerated with great speed. David Cameron, prime minister, chose to resign, thought that he was going to be there until the 9th of September, and, boom, suddenly, in a couple of days, because there was no other candidate but Theresa May to succeed him, he finds that the removal van has arrived and he's left and he's been to see the queen. And we have a new prime minister and we have half a new Cabinet, well, not quite half, but a number of senior positions already announced.

　　So I think the mood is one of some surprise, amazement⁵ at how quickly things move, and coming to terms with new realities.

　　外交官员谈英国新任首相特雷莎·梅

　　GWEN IFILL: Tell us about Theresa May. You know her. Tell us what we can expect of her.

　　SIR PETER WESTMACOTT: Well, I knew her, saw a good deal of her when she came to stay with us when I was ambassador in France, when we had big migration⁶ issues, and also, of course, when she used to come to Washington.

　　I think she's a very businesslike, no-nonsense person. She's not someone who has cliquey personal entourages. She is very grounded. she comes from a humble⁷, straightforward⁸ background, a vicar's daughter. And I'm a vicar's son myself, so I can say these things.

　　She is very professional. She does her homework. She likes to get her way, I would say. And she makes up her mind and she's pretty hard to shift unless you are very, very sure of your ground. But she has made a couple of speeches in the last day or two which are extraordinarily⁹ inclusive and very centrist, even, I would say, and quite surprising for somebody who was considered to be on the right of the Conservative Party, about the importance of the British people coming together and of a government which is for all the people and not just the privileged few.

　　So, I think that may have surprised a few people, but encouraged a lot of people as well.

　　GWEN IFILL: She moved quickly today to fill her Cabinet, including making Boris Johnson, who declined to run for prime minister, her — to make her foreign minister, and Philip Hammond her finance minister. These are the two men who are going to have execute these Brexit negotiations.

　　SIR PETER WESTMACOTT: Well, they are, but they're also going to have one other key player is going to be the leader of the negotiation³, of whatever it's going to be called, the department of the withdrawal¹⁰ from the European Union, who is going to be David Davis.

　　So, Philip Hammond, you're right, my old boss, extremely knowledgeable¹¹ about accounts, numbers, an experienced negotiator, understands budgets, sorted out the finances of the Ministry¹² of Defense¹³ when he was defense secretary, he's gone to Treasury¹⁴. And I think that is an appointment that will be widely welcomed.

　　I think the appointment of Boris to the Foreign Office was probably a surprise as much to him as to many other people, because after the referendum, which seemed — the result of which seemed to surprise him, he didn't appear to be quite clear what he did next and made a number of statements which suggested that nothing was going to change between Britain's relationship and the European Union.

　　So I think he will be thrilled. Obviously, he's visibly delighted to go to the Foreign Office, born in the United States of America, partly Turkish, partly American, great cosmopolitan¹⁵, extremely cultured man, speaks lots of languages.

　　He will have a wonderful time in the Foreign Office. And he will not, I suspect,be in the lead of these particular negotiations. I think that will be left to the other ministers largely, but I'm not sure about that. That depends very much on how the prime minister handles it.

　　And my guess is that her own relationship with Angela Merkel is going to be critical to the success of those negotiations, too.

　　GWEN IFILL: Does David Cameron leaving the scene so quickly today, does he leave behind a legacy¹⁶ of failure or success?

　　SIR PETER WESTMACOTT: I think, curate's egg, probably, some good stuff, some bad stuff. I think my own view is that the grand coalition¹⁷ that he was bold enough to create when he didn't win a majority in the general election in 2010 was a remarkable piece of political accomplishment¹⁸. I think the coalition government between the Lib Dems and the Conservatives worked very well for the first parliamentary term between 2010 and 2015.

　　In some ways, it smoothed the corners, if you like, of the policies of each party. And demonstrably the prime minister and Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg got on very well. And I think they got some good business done, so I think that was a plus.

　　I think the way in which he got the British economy going after the meltdown of 2008 and 2009 was pretty remarkable. The United Kingdom has a level of unemployment which is less than half the European average. We have been growing at the fastest rate of any European Union country for the last three years. Along the United States, we have been leading the Western democracies out of recession.

　　They have cut the deficit¹⁹ by more than half. So I think the economic story will be a plus for David Cameron. And running the referendum and winning it on Scotland was a plus. People said at the time it was a gamble, but, in the end, there was a 10-point difference, so that kept Scotland in the United Kingdom.

　　But his legacy inevitably²⁰ is going to one which is colored by the fact that he took something of a gamble in organizing this referendum because his own party had become somewhat ungovernable, believed that he could win if it came to the referendum actually being held. And alas²¹ for him and alas for, in my view, many of us, it didn't work out.

　　And so the United Kingdom is leaving, and I think that the United Kingdom's decision to vote to leave the European Union is inevitably going to be one of the main features of David Cameron's political legacy.

　　GWEN IFILL: Former British Ambassador to the United States Peter Westmacott, thank you very much.

　　SIR PETER WESTMACOTT: Thank you.

1 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

2 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

3 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

4 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

5 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

6 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

7 humble   

adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低

参考例句：

• In my humble opinion,he will win the election.依我拙见，他将在选举中获胜。
• Defeat and failure make people humble.挫折与失败会使人谦卑。

8 straightforward   

adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的

参考例句：

• A straightforward talk is better than a flowery speech.巧言不如直说。
• I must insist on your giving me a straightforward answer.我一定要你给我一个直截了当的回答。

9 extraordinarily   

adv.格外地；极端地

参考例句：

• She is an extraordinarily beautiful girl.她是个美丽非凡的姑娘。
• The sea was extraordinarily calm that morning.那天清晨，大海出奇地宁静。

10 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

11 knowledgeable   

adj.知识渊博的；有见识的

参考例句：

• He's quite knowledgeable about the theatre.他对戏剧很有心得。
• He made some knowledgeable remarks at the meeting.他在会上的发言颇有见地。

12 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

13 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

14 treasury   

n.宝库；国库，金库；文库

参考例句：

• The Treasury was opposed in principle to the proposals.财政部原则上反对这些提案。
• This book is a treasury of useful information.这本书是有价值的信息宝库。

15 cosmopolitan   

adj.世界性的，全世界的，四海为家的，全球的

参考例句：

• New York is a highly cosmopolitan city.纽约是一个高度世界性的城市。
• She has a very cosmopolitan outlook on life.她有四海一家的人生观。

16 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

17 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

18 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

19 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

20 inevitably   

adv.不可避免地；必然发生地

参考例句：

• In the way you go on,you are inevitably coming apart.照你们这样下去，毫无疑问是会散伙的。
• Technological changes will inevitably lead to unemployment.技术变革必然会导致失业。

21 alas   

int.唉(表示悲伤、忧愁、恐惧等)

参考例句：

• Alas!The window is broken!哎呀！窗子破了！
• Alas,the truth is less romantic.然而，真理很少带有浪漫色彩。