The U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, has delivered his eagerly-awaited assessment to his bosses in Washington and Brussels, but the document is being kept secret. Pentagon officials say it will be followed by international consultations and possibly requests for more U.S. and international forces.
美军和北约驻阿富汗司令斯坦利.麦克里斯特尔向他在华盛顿和布鲁塞尔的上司提交了一份期待已久的评估报告，但这份报告的内容目前保密。五角大楼官员说，接下来将会与各国进行磋商，并且可能会要求美国和国际社会向阿富汗增派兵力。
According to a NATO release, General McChrystal writes that "the situation in Afghanistan is serious, but success is achievable." The general is quoted as saying success will require "a revised implementation strategy," as well as commitment, resolve, and increased unity of effort. But that is all that has been made public.
根据北约透露的信息，麦克里斯特尔将军在报告中写道，“阿富汗的局势严峻，不过能够取得胜利。”北约援引麦克里斯特尔的话说，胜利需要“一个调整的实施策略”，还有承诺、决心和更加统一的努力。这些就是报告被公开的部分。
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he has not yet seen the assessment, but told reporters what he expects it to contain.
美国国防部长罗伯特.盖茨说，他还没有看到这份评估报告。但他向记者表达了他期待这份报告将会包含哪些内容。
"I think that his assessment, without having read it, I suspect is going to point to the challenges that remain before us in Afghanistan. I think it will also point to areas where we can do better and can make improvements in our strategy and tactics," he said.
他说：“我还没有看到这份报告，我估计他的评估报告将会指明我们在阿富汗所面临的挑战。我认为，报告还会指出在哪些领域我们能够做得更好，还有我们可以在哪些领域提高我们的策略和战术。”
Some civilian advisers invited to Afghanistan to help General McChrystal prepare his assessment have said he needs more troops to put down a resurgent Taliban and establish security at least in Afghan population centers. Some analyses of the current situation have been fairly dire, including one by the top U.S. military officer, Admiral Mike Mullen, who has said security in Afghanistan is "serious and deteriorating." But Secretary Gates says he expects a balanced assessment from General McChrystal.
一些应邀到阿富汗帮助麦克里斯特尔将军准备这份评估报告的非军方顾问曾经表示，麦克里斯特尔需要更多军队来平息塔利班的暴力活动，并且至少能在阿富汗人口集中的地区提供安全保障。一些对当前阿富汗局势的分析颇令人感到担忧。比如美军参谋长联席会议主席麦克.马伦上将形容阿富汗的安全局势“严峻而且正在恶化。”不过，国防部长盖茨表示，他期待麦克里斯特尔将军较为平衡的评估报告。
"While there is a lot of gloom and doom going around, I think that General McChrystal's assessment will be a realistic one and set forth the challenges we have in front of us. And at the same time, I think we have some assets in place and some developments that hold promise," said the secretary of defense.
他说，“尽管很多人认为前景黯淡、希望渺茫，我想麦克里斯特尔将军的评估报告会是一份实事求是的报告，并且阐明我们面临的挑战。同时，我认为我们取得了一些成就和进展。这使我们对未来抱有希望。”
Gates noted he has been concerned about sending too many foreign troops to Afghanistan and potentially alienating its people. But he says McChrystal can ask for more troops if he thinks he needs them. Still the secretary he acknowledged it would be difficult to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan in the short term, and expressed concern about the cost of an increased commitment.
盖茨说，他对向阿富汗派遣过多外国军队感到担忧，因为这可能会使阿富汗人感到反感。但是他说，如果麦克里斯特尔认为有必要，他可以要求增派军队。盖茨承认，在短期内向阿富汗增派美军是有困难的，而且他也对增派部队所带来的开销表示担忧。
"We have been very explicit that General McChrystal should be forthright in telling us what he needs in order to accomplish the mission that he has been given. And we will look at his assessment and then we will look at the resource recommendations that he makes," he added.
Secretary Gates also said there have been some positive developments in Afghanistan, including the recent election and the arrival of more U.S. and international troops.
盖茨还表示，阿富汗有一些积极的进步，包括阿富汗最近的选举和更多美军和国际部队到达那里。
Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman says there are no plans to make General McChrystal's report public, calling it "a confidential military assessment."
五角大楼发言人惠特曼说，目前不打算公开麦克里斯特尔的评估报告。他表示，那是“一份机密的军事评估报告”。
Whitman says any request for additional forces will come only after high-level international consultations.
惠特曼说，任何要求增兵的请求都必须经过高级别的国际磋商。
"I am told it does not include specific recommendations or requests for additional forces or funding, that only after the president and NATO leaders have had discussions related to implementation will there be resourcing options that could be presented or considered at that point," he said.
他说，“据我所知，报告没有提出有关增派部队或增加资金的具体建议或要求。只有在总统和北约领导人举行有关执行计划的协商后，才会提出资源提供方案和进行相关讨论。”
Whitman says this assessment is designed to provide an implementation plan for the new strategy President Barack Obama announced in March, which calls for a regional approach and a focus on ensuring Afghanistan does not again become a base for international terrorism, as it was before the September 11 attacks in 2001. The president also approved an increase of more than 20,000 U.S. troops, most of whom have already arrived.
Any request from General McChrystal would be in addition to the authorized total of 68,000 U.S. troops and the current contingent of 37,000 troops from NATO and other partner countries.
麦克里斯特尔将军提出的任何增兵要求都将是建立在目前批准的6万8000美军和3万7000北约和其它伙伴国部队的基础上。 |