Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the United States is laying groundwork for new sanctions against Iran if outreach to Tehran on its nuclear program fails to produce results. Clinton says the Obama administration's call for dialogue provides more leverage in efforts to persuade Iran to halt uranium enrichment.
国务卿希拉里·克林顿说，如果就伊朗核计划对德黑兰施加的压力没有产生结果，美国就会奠定对伊朗实施新的制裁的基础。克林顿说，奥巴马政府呼吁和伊朗进行对话提供了更多的杠杆，从而能够有效地说服伊朗停止铀浓缩活动。
Clinton told Congress the administration's conciliatory policy toward Iran is not open-ended, and that if efforts to persuade that country to halt enrichment and return to negotiations on its nuclear program fail, Tehran would face tighter sanctions.
克林顿国务卿向美国国会表示，美国政府对伊朗实行的接触政策不是毫无底线的。如果努力说服伊朗停止铀浓缩活动并就其核计划回到谈判桌前来的做法失败，伊朗将面临更严厉的制裁。
The Secretary raised the prospect of additional sanctions at a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing under questioning from committee chairman Howard Berman, who said he is concerned Iran might see a more friendly U.S. approach as merely a green light to pursue nuclear weapons.
美国国务卿克林顿在众议院外交委员会的听证会上回答委员会主席霍华德.伯曼的提问时，提到了对伊朗实施新的制裁的前景。伯曼表示，他担心伊朗看到一个更加友好的美国之后，可能会误认为是为其寻求核武器而开的绿灯。
"I cannot get away from the fact that Iran's efforts to acquire a nuclear-weapons capability keep going ahead, and that this engagement cannot be so open ended that we essentially pass the threshold that we are seeking to avoid by virtue of the engagement," said Howard Berman.
他说，“我不能排除一个事实，那就是伊朗争取获得核武器的能力正在不断地发展，而且和伊朗接触的做法不能不设任何限制，以至超过我们最基本的底线，也就是说通过接触要寻求伊朗不再(发展核武器)。”
Clinton told Berman the Obama administration has no illusions about its engagement with Iran and is operating on two tracks, offering dialogue but also preparing for additional punitive action if the outreach is spurned or inconclusive.
克林顿国务卿对伯曼说，奥巴马政府对和伊朗接触并没有任何幻想，目前正在推行两条腿走路的政策，一方面提出对话，另一方面，如果美国的提议遭到拒绝或者没有结果，则准备实施更多的惩罚性措施。
"Yes we are more than willing to reach out to the Iranians to discuss a range of issues assuming they are willing to reach back," said Hillary Clinton. "As the President said in his inaugural address, we will hold out our hand-they have to unclench their fist. But we are also laying the groundwork for the kind of very tough, I think you said, crippling sanctions that might be necessary in the event our offers are either rejected or the process is inconclusive or unsuccessful."
她说：“是的，我们更愿意出去接触伊朗人，并且就他们可能作出反馈的一系列问题举行磋商。正如总统在其就职演说中所说，我们将伸出手，但是他们也必须放松拳头。不过，正如你所说，一旦我们的提议被拒绝或者其过程没有产生结果，或失败，我们也在为必要时实施的更严厉的制裁措施制定框架方案。”
The Secretary said the administration's effort to engage Iran - on the nuclear issue and other topics - will strengthen its position in a drive for additional international sanctions if that proves necessary.
美国国务卿表示，美国行政当局在伊朗核问题以及其他问题上和伊朗接触的努力，将加强促进如果必要则对伊朗实施更多国际制裁方面的立场。
The Bush administration spurned direct contacts with Iran without a prior commitment by Tehran to halt enrichment.
布什政府拒绝与伊朗直接接触，除非伊朗事先承诺停止铀浓缩活动。
But the new administration has committed to be a full participant in nuclear contacts with Iran by the P5 Plus One, the five permanent U.N. Security Council member countries and Germany.
但是，奥巴马新政府已承诺和五个联合国安理会常任理事国加上德国一道，全面参与和伊朗就核问题的接触。
The Security Council has approved three sanctions resolutions against Iran because of its defiance of demands for transparency on its nuclear program, which it says is entirely peaceful.
联合国安全理事会已通过对伊朗实施制裁的三个决议，因为伊朗无视要求其核计划必须透明化。伊朗方面表示，其核项目完全用于和平目的。
Efforts by the previous administration for more sanctions were blocked last year amid resistance from Russia and China
On another issue, Clinton lamented the lack of cooperation by Iran on the case of Robert Levinson, a former FBI agent believed missing in Iran for more than two years.
She also said Iranian-American journalist Roxana Saberi, sentenced by Iran to eight years in prison on spy charges earlier this month, is being held in an arbitrary, terribly unfair and unjustified way and should be allowed to return home.
The Obama administration has rejected the spy charge as baseless. |