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　　U.S. defense¹ officials responded cautiously Thursday to a report that Pakistan plans to give weapons to thousands of men in its western region so they can join the fight against militants³ who have taken refuge in the area.
美国国防部官员星期四对一篇媒体报导小心地做出回应，这篇报导说巴基斯坦计划将武器给西部区域的数千个人，好让他们能加入对抗藏匿在该区域武装份子的战斗行列。
A senior U.S. military official told VOA he was not aware of the Pakistani plan reported by The Washington Post, and is not sure if the report is accurate. Speaking on condition of anonymity⁴, the officer also could also not confirm the Post's claim that the United States supports the Pakistani plan, but he said U.S. military leaders do, in general, support what he called "innovative⁵ ideas" to deal with militant² safe havens⁷ in western Pakistan.
一名高级美军官员对美国之音说，他不知道华盛顿邮报关于巴基斯坦这项计划的报导，他不能确定报导是否实属。这名官员以匿名方式受访，他还表示不能确认美国支持巴基斯坦这项计划，但他说美军领导人大致上支持任何用来对付巴基斯坦西部武装份子藏身之处的“有创意的想法”。
Pentagon Spokesman Brian Whitman had a similar view.
五角大楼发言人惠特曼也有类似的看法。
"What we support is efforts by the Pakistani government to deal with these extremist threats that are not only a threat to their own country, but also to, in particular, the bordering country of Afghanistan, where we've seen an increased activity along that border. So I would say that we are supportive of the Pakistani government acknowledging and dealing⁹ with these internal extremist threats in their country," he said.
他说：“我们支持的是巴基斯坦政府对抗这些激进分子威胁的努力。这些激进份子威胁的不仅是巴基斯坦，还尤其威胁与阿富汗接壤的国家。我们在这个边境上已经看到了日益增长的武装活动。所以我会说，我们支持巴基斯坦政府承认以及处理在他们国家内部的激进分子的威胁。”
Whitman could not comment on the specific program reported by The Washington Post, but he said any effort that addresses extremists in Pakistan in an "effective" and "meaningful" way "is good."
惠特曼不愿对华盛顿邮报有关巴基斯坦计划的报导发表评论，但他说，任何以“有效”以及“有意义”的方式对付巴基斯坦境内激进分子的努力都是好的。
The Post report says Pakistan plans to provide Chinese-made AK-47 rifles to thousands of fighters in new local militias¹⁰, whose leaders say they will fight the Taliban. Top officials of the militant movement that used to rule Afghanistan, and allies in other groups including al-Qaida, have taken refuge in western Pakistan, and U.S. officials say they use the safe haven⁶ to plan attacks in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and possibly elsewhere.
“华盛顿邮报”报道说，巴基斯坦计划提供中国制AK-47型枪支给成千上万名当地新招的民兵，这些民兵的领导人说他们会打击塔利班。曾经统治阿富汗的这个激进团体的高级官员，及包括基地组织在内的其他团伙的高级官员，都藏匿在巴基斯坦西部。美国官员表示，他们利用这些藏匿处策划向巴基斯坦、阿富汗以及其他地方发动攻击。
A Pakistani effort to control militants in the western tribal¹¹ areas through agreements with local leaders failed last year, and was sharply criticized by U.S. officials. The officials believe that effort delayed the kind of more-decisive moves into the western region by Pakistan's army that have only happened in recent months. Those operations have earned praise from many of the same U.S. officials who criticized the earlier approach.
巴基斯坦为了控制西部部落地区的武装分子曾试图与当地领导人通过协议合作，但这项举动在去年失败，巴基斯坦政府因而遭到美国官员猛烈批评。官员相信，这项举动延误了巴基斯坦政府军队对西部区域采取更果断进攻行动的时机。而这些果断的行动最近几个月才开始进行。这些行动受到美国官员的称赞。而同样是这些美国官员，早些时候曾经批评巴基斯坦与部落合作的措施。
Some experts point out that Pakistan's tribesmen are generally well armed already. The experts say the more important question is how the tribes use their weapons. American strategists believe local forces can play a key role in fighting insurgents¹² and terrorists, as they did in Iraq, particularly in its Anbar Province, where tribal leaders decided¹³ to oppose al-Qaida early last year and helped turn the tide of that conflict. But they also caution that it is a difficult and potentially dangerous process.
一些专家指出，巴基斯坦部落人士总的说来装备精良。专家说，更重要的问题是部落民兵如何运用他们的武器。美国战略专家相信，当地民兵武装可以在打击叛乱分子以及恐怖分子上起重要的作用，就像在伊拉克，尤其在安巴尔省的部落武装一样。安巴尔省的部落领导人今年早些时候决定反抗基地组织，在他们协助下扭转了冲突势头。不过专家同时警告，这个过程会是困难的，而且可能有潜在危险。
The officer who spoke⁸ on condition of anonymity Thursday said, "the devil is in the details." He said if Pakistan is going to arm local militiamen, the success or failure of the program will depend on who has the power to make key decisions, and exactly who they decide to give the weapons.
这位不愿意透露姓名的官员星期四表示，“细节决定成败”。他说，如果巴基斯坦要武装当地的民兵，那么这个计划的成败将取决于谁拥有关键的决策权，精确地说，取决于他们决定把武器分配给谁。