Obama Meets Karzai in Kabul
奥巴马在喀布尔会晤卡尔扎伊

　 
U.S Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama met with Afghan President Hamid Karzai in Kabul on Sunday. The U.S. Senator, who is traveling as part of a congressional delegation, also met with U.S. troops and military commanders.

美国民主党总统候选人奥巴马星期日在喀布尔会晤了阿富汗总统卡尔扎伊。奥巴马参议员作为一个美国国会代表团成员，还看望了在阿富汗的美国部队和军事指挥官。

Barack Obama held talks over lunch with President Hamid Karzai at the heavily guarded presidential palace. He was accompanied by fellow Senators Jack Reed and Chuck Hagel at the meeting.

奥巴马在重兵把守的阿富汗总统府同卡尔扎伊总统共进午餐，双方同时举行了会谈。陪同奥巴马出席这次会议的还有罗德岛州民主党参议员里德和内布拉斯加州共和党参议员黑格尔。

Afghan presidential spokesman Homayoon Hamedzada told reporters after the meeting that the two sides exchanged views on a wide range of issues, including progress Afghanistan has made in rebuilding the country and combatting terrorism.

卡尔扎伊的发言人哈米德扎达在会后对记者们说，双方就广泛议题交换了意见，其中包括阿富汗在国家重建和打击恐怖主义方面所取得的进展。

"Senator Obama conveyed his commitment to Afghanistan that he is committed to supporting Afghanistan and to continue the war against terrorism with vigor. From the Afghan side, of course, President Karzai appreciates that," Hamedzada said. "We know, president Karzai has said this before, that both [U.S. political] parties are friends of Afghanistan, and no matter who wins the U.S election, Afghanistan will have a very strong partner in the United States."

他说：“奥巴马参议员表达了他对阿富汗的支持，以及继续同恐怖主义积极作战的决心。当然，在阿富汗方面，卡尔扎伊总统对此表示感谢。我们知道，卡尔扎伊总统以前就说过，美国民主、共和这两个政党都是阿富汗的朋友，无论谁赢得美国总统选举，阿富汗都将在美国拥有一个非常坚定的盟友。”

Senator Obama has promised to send more troops to Afghanistan if he wins the U.S. presidential election and has called for a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.

奥巴马参议员承诺，如果他赢得总统宝座，将向阿富汗派遣更多部队，他还提出要逐步将美军从伊拉克撤回。

But Obama also has criticized President Karzai for not doing enough to rebuild Afghanistan's institutions.

但是，奥巴马同时批评说，卡尔扎伊总统在重建阿富汗国家机构方面做得不够。

When asked to respond to Obama's criticism, presidential spokesman Hamedzada acknowledged the difficulties Afghanistan is facing.

在被问到这一问题时，发言人哈米德扎达承认阿富汗所面临的困难。

"We did not see that as a criticism because there is a degree of realism in that statement. And that is the fact that, while we are making significant progress in rebuilding our country fighting terrorism and making normal life for all Afghans affordable, we are also facing a significant threat of terrorism," Hamedzada said.

他说：“我们并不觉得这是一种批评，因为奥巴马的话在一定程度上反映了现实情况。那就是，虽然我们在重建国家、打击恐怖主义，并让所有阿富汗人过上正常生活方面正取得显著进展，但我们也同时面临着来自恐怖主义的严峻威胁。”

President Karzai is an important ally in the U.S-led war against terror, but he has lately come under increasing criticism at home and abroad for not taking tough action to eliminate growing corruption in his administration, deal with former warlords and stamp out narcotics production. Critics say all these factors are feeding the growing Taliban insurgency.

在美国领导的反恐战争中，卡尔扎伊总统是一个重要盟友，但是他最近在国内外受到越来越多的人的批评，原因是他没有采取强硬措施去清除政府内部不断滋生的腐败，去对付以前的阿富汗军阀，去铲除毒品生产。批评人士说，所有这些因素助长了日益猖獗的塔利班反叛活动。

The congressional delegation is also to visit the Iraq on the tour of the Middle East and Europe. The tour is widely seen as an attempt by the Democratic presidential candidate to answer Republican criticism that he does not have the experience to deal with foreign policy issues and to be a commander-in-chief of the U.S armed forces. Obama's Republican rival, John McCain, has criticized Obama for announcing a strategy for Iraq and Afghanistan before traveling to the countries.

这个美国国会代表团还将在中东和欧洲之行期间访问伊拉克。外界普遍认为，奥巴马此行是为了回应共和党对他的批评。共和党的批评指出，奥巴马不具备处理外交政策问题和担任美国武装部队统帅的经验。奥巴马的对手、共和党总统候选人麦凯恩批评说，奥巴马在访问伊拉克和阿富汗之前，就宣布有关这两个国家问题的战略。

On Saturday, Mr. Obama was flown to northeastern Afghanistan where he was briefed by regional commanders of the NATO-led forces. Mostly U.S forces are stationed in the eastern parts of the country, which have seen a significant rise in Taliban attacks this year.

星期六，奥巴马乘飞机到阿富汗东北部，并在那里听取了北约联军区域指挥官的报告。大部分美军都驻守在阿富汗东部，今年以来，这一地区的塔利班袭击活动显著增加。