The president began his day by hosting a breakfast at the White House for Gold Star Families - those who have lost loved ones in war.
这一天,总统首先在白宫举行早餐会,宴请那些获得金星奖的家庭，也就是那些在战争中失去亲人的家庭。
As is traditional each year on Memorial Day, when the nation honors its war dead, the president and his wife then traveled the short distance from the White House across the Potomac River to Arlington National Cemetery.
就像每年阵亡将士纪念日的传统一样，总统和夫人随后前往距离白宫不远的位于波托马克河对岸的阿灵顿国家公墓。
There Obama took part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns, followed by a Memorial Day service in a large amphitheater at the cemetery.
在那里，奥巴马向无名战士墓敬献花圈，在公墓的露天会场随后还举行了阵亡将士纪念日的纪念活动。
Saying his heart goes out to those mourning the loss of a loved one, Obama said the sacrifices of those who have been killed defending the United States must always be remembered.
奥巴马说，他对那些哀悼失去亲人的人深表同情。他说， 那些为捍卫国家而捐躯的人所付出的牺牲应该被永远牢记。
"On this day we remember that it is on our behalf that they gave their lives," said President Obama. "We remember that it is their courage, their unselfishness, their devotion to duty that has sustained this country through all its trials and will sustain us through all the trials to come. We remember that the blessings we enjoy as Americans came at a dear cost; that our very presence here today, as free people in a free society, bears testimony to their enduring legacy."
他说：”我们今天纪念那些为了我们而付出生命的人。我们将记住，正是因为他们的勇气、无私和忠于职守，才使这个国家经受住了各种磨难，并将支撑我们渡过未来的种种困境。我们将铭刻，我们现在作为美国人所享受到的祝福是以昂贵的代价换来的。我们今天聚集在这里，作为自由社会的自由民众是对他们永恒的遗产的最好证明。”
Introducing the president at the Arlington memorial service was Robert Gates, the outgoing defense secretary who served not only Mr. Obama but his predecessor in the White House, former President George W. Bush.
即将离任的美国国防部长盖茨在阿灵顿国家公墓的纪念活动上介绍了总统。他不仅在奥巴马政府内任职，他也是小布什总统时期的国防部长。
"As I come to the end of my time in this post, I know this will be my final opportunity to stand and to speak in this hallowed place and pay tribute to the fallen," said Gates. "It is up to us to be worthy of their sacrifice in the decisions we make, the priorities we set, the support we provide to troops, veterans and their families."
他说：“我即将离开我的职位，我知道这将是我站在这个神圣的地方向那些在战争中阵亡的将士说话并致敬的最后机会。他们的牺牲是否值得取决于我们的抉择，我们制定的工作重点，以及我们为军队、退伍军人以及他们的家庭所提供的支持。”
Before President Obama left Arlington cemetery, he and his wife stopped at Section 60, an area containing the graves of men and women who lost their lives in wars since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. According to Defense Department figures, nearly 6,000 U.S. military personnel have died in Iraq and Afghanistan, with more 43,000 wounded.
总统和夫人在离开国家公墓之前还特意前往第60区祭拜。在这个区内，埋葬着在2001年911恐怖袭击后牺牲的军人。根据国防部的数据，近6000名美国军人在伊拉克和阿富汗战争中死亡，另外有4万3千人受伤。
President Obama also used Memorial Day to announce new leadership changes for the military.
奥巴马总统还利用阵亡将士纪念日的机会宣布了军队领导层的人事变动。
Earlier, in a Rose Garden ceremony, he confirmed his choice of U.S. Army General Martin Dempsey as the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
在前往阿灵顿国家公墓之前，在白宫玫瑰园的纪念仪式上，总统提名陆军上将马丁·登普西出任新的参谋长联席会议主席。
With extensive experience in the Iraq war, General Dempsey, after U.S. Senate confirmation, would replace U.S. Navy Admiral Mike Mullen, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush and was kept by President Obama.
登普西将军在伊拉克战争中拥有丰富的作战经验，在获得参议院的确认后，他将接替海军上将迈克·马伦出任参谋长联席会议主席一职。马伦上将是前总统布什任命的，并在奥巴马总统任期内留任。
Obama praised Mullen, citing his involvement in everything from military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan to revitalizing U.S. relations with NATO and resetting relations with Russia.
奥巴马总统高度赞扬了马伦的贡献。他说，从伊拉克和阿富汗的军事行动，到美国重振美国与北约的关系，以及重新打造与俄罗斯的关系中，马伦都作出了重要的贡献。
The president called General Dempsey one of the nation's most respected and combat-tested generals.
奥巴马总统称登普西将军是这个国家最受尊敬并是”久经沙场”的将军之一。
"In Iraq, he led our soldiers against a brutal insurgency," he said. "Having trained Iraqi forces he knows that nations must ultimately take responsibility for their own security. Having served as acting commander of Central Command he understands that in Iraq and Afghanistan security gains and political progress must go hand in hand."
他说：“领导我们的士兵打败了伊拉克的残酷的叛乱活动。他还培训了伊拉克部队，因为他知道这些国家最终必须自己担负自己的安全防务。他曾经担任过中央司令部代理司令一职，他知道在伊拉克和阿富汗，在确保安全防务上的胜利的同时，政治进程也必须同时跟进。”
Another Iraq water veteran, U.S. Army General Ray Odierno, moves from his current position as head of the U.S. Joint Forces Command, to become Army chief.
另一名参加过伊拉克战争的将领，陆军上将罗伊·奥迪耶诺将从现任美国联合部队司令部司令的职位上离任，转任陆军参谋长一职。
Obama said Odierno helped bring down once rampant violence in Iraq and oversaw the transfer of security responsibility to Iraqi forces, paving the way for the formal end of the U.S. combat mission in Iraq.
奥巴马说，奥迪耶诺将军帮助平息了伊拉克曾一度猖獗的暴力活动，并监督完成了美军将安全防务责任移交给伊拉克部队的任务，为美国最终结束在伊拉克的战斗任务铺平了道路。
The president also announced that Admiral James Winnefeld, commander of the U.S. Northern Command, will become vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs.
总统还宣布，现任美国北方司令部司令海军上将詹姆斯·温尼菲德将出任参谋长联席会议的副主席。
In announcing his choices Monday, President Obama said they mark the first time that the chairman and vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff will have the experience of having led combat operations in the years since the September 11, 2001 al-Qaida terrorist attacks on the United States.
奥巴马总统在宣布任命的时候还说，第一次，美军参谋长联席会议的主席和副主席都有领导2001年9月11号基地组织恐怖袭击后的美国军事行动的经验。 |