Panel Calls on US and Russia to Repair Strained Relations
美国跨党派委员会促改善美俄关系

A bipartisan commission of former U.S. senators and other leading foreign policy experts is calling on the Obama administration to reach out to Russia to improve strained relations. The panel describes bilateral ties as "deeply troubled," and calls on both countries to work together to deal with the global challenges they both face, including a potential nuclear threat from Iran.

由前美国国会参议员和其他主要外交政策专家组成的一个跨党派委员会呼吁奥巴马政府向俄罗斯伸出手来，改善双方的紧张关系。委员会认为美俄双边关系陷入“深深的麻烦”之中，因此呼吁两国共同努力，处理面临的全球挑战，其中包括来自伊朗的潜在核威胁。

The high-level panel, organized by the Nixon Center in Washington and Harvard University's Belfer Center for Science and international Affairs, was headed by former U.S. Senators Gary Hart and Chuck Hagel.　

这个高层次的委员会是由华盛顿的尼克松中心和哈佛大学贝尔弗科学与国际事务中心组织的，共同主席是前参议员加里.哈特和查克.黑格尔。

The two men were part of a delegation that traveled to Russia last week and met with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev.

上个星期，哈特和黑格尔加入了一个代表团前往俄罗斯访问，并会见了俄罗斯总统梅德韦杰夫。

The former senators stressed that their Kremlin meeting was very positive and productive. But Democrat Gary Hart said the reception he received from some Russian lawmakers and the feeling he picked up on the streets of Moscow was much cooler.

这两位前参议员强调说，在克里姆林宫的这次会见是积极的和富有建设性的。但是民主党人哈特表示，一些俄罗斯国会议员对他的态度以及他在莫斯科街头的感受则冷淡得多。

"I sensed personally more anti-Americanism on this trip than I did at any time during the Cold War, and it was dismaying," he said.　

哈特说：“我个人在这次访问中感受到的反美情绪比我在冷战中的任何时候所感受到的还要强烈。这让人感到沮丧。”

The panel concluded that both Moscow and Washington are to blame for the deterioration of diplomatic relations during the past year. Russia's war with Georgia and U.S. plans to install an anti-missile defense system in Eastern Europe have been two of the major causes of tensions. 

委员会认为，莫斯科和华盛顿都要为双边关系在过去一年里的恶化负责任。俄罗斯和格鲁吉亚的战争以及美国在东欧部署反导弹防御系统的计划是导致关系紧张的两个主要原因。

Former Senator Hart said a long period of emphasizing differences instead of common goals and interests will take time to repair.　

前参议员哈特说，由于双方在很长一段时间里强调的是分歧而不是共同目标和利益，因此修复关系需要时间。

"There will not be a dramatic meeting of heads of state in Red Square, with hugs and kisses, exchange of flags, and all will be well," he said. "It takes a while to build up animosity; it takes a while to get rid of it, and I am convinced it will."　

他说：“这并不是两国元首在红场上戏剧性地会面、拥抱、亲吻、互换国旗就可以解决的.建立敌意需要时日，而解除敌意也需要时间，但我确信敌意是能够解除的。”

But Hart said he did believe public opinion in Russia would shift in favor of the United States when President Medvedev is expected to meet with President Barack Obama next month at an international economic summit in London. 

不过哈特表示，他认为俄罗斯总统梅德韦杰夫下月在伦敦的一次国际经济峰会上和美国总统奥巴马会见的时候时，俄罗斯公众的看法会朝有利于美国的方向发展。

After meeting with the former U.S. senators last week, Mr. Medvedev said there is every chance of opening a "new page" in U.S.-Russian relations. 

梅德韦杰夫总统上星期会见前美国参议员后表示，美俄关系有机会翻开“新的一页”。

Former Republican Senator Chuck Hagel said the United States has a strong national interest in working with Russia on a number of foreign policy issues, with Iran heading the list.　

前共和党参议员黑格尔表示，在一系列外交政策问题上同俄罗斯合作符合美国的国家利益，而伊朗问题居于首位。

"Iran came up in all the issues - the seriousness of the Iranian nuclear threat, where they are on this, was very clear to the Russians," he said. "Again, I am not speaking for them. So this is a very significant issue, that I believe is going to require, just as we note in our first recommendation, both the United States and Russia working very closely together."

黑格尔说：“伊朗出现在所有问题之中--俄罗斯人非常清楚伊朗核威胁的严重性以及伊朗人目前进展到什么程度。我并不是替他们说话。这是一个非常重要的问题，我认为需要美国和俄罗斯人之间的密切合作。”来源：www.yeeyi.net

President Obama said recently that reducing the nuclear weapons threat posed by Iran would limit the need for a planned missile defense system in Eastern Europe. 

奥巴马总统最近表示，减少伊朗的核武器威胁能够减少对计划在东欧修建的导弹防御系统的需要。

The report on U.S.-Russia relations concludes that if Moscow and Washington succeed in building better ties, America could make significant foreign policy gains from Iran to Afghanistan and beyond. 

委员会的美俄关系报告做出结论说，如果莫斯科和华盛顿建立更好关系的努力获得成功，那么美国就可以在对伊朗、阿富汗以及其他国家的外交政策方面取得重大进展。