This is IN THE NEWS in VOA Special English.
这里是美国之音慢速英语时事新闻节目。
American Defense Secretary Robert Gates has told NATO members that they need to do more -- and spend more -- to support the alliance.
美国国防部长盖茨对北约成员国表示，他们需要承担更多、投入更多来支持北约。
ROBERT GATES: "The blunt reality is that there will be dwindling appetite and patience in the US Congress -- and in the American body politic writ large -- to expend increasingly precious funds on behalf of nations that are apparently unwilling to devote the necessary resources or make the necessary changes to be serious and capable partners in their own defense."
盖茨：“现实是，美国国会和政界专家的兴趣和耐心在减少，他们不愿意耗费宝贵资金，去支持那些不愿意在自身防务上投入必要资源或做出必要改变，以使自己成为负责的并有能力的合作伙伴的那些国家。”
On Friday, Mr. Gates gave his last policy speech before he retires as defense secretary on June thirtieth. He spoke in Brussels, Belgium, at the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. NATO was created in nineteen forty-nine to defend western Europe against the Soviet Union.
周五，盖茨在他将于6月30日卸任国防部长前，发表了最后一份政策演说。他在比利时布鲁塞尔的北大西洋公约组织（以下简称北约）总部发表了讲话。北约成立于1949年，目的是帮助西欧对抗前苏联。
Mr. Gates spoke about one current NATO operation -- the bombing campaign in Libya. He noted that all twenty-eight members voted for the mission. But less than half have taken part at all, he said, and fewer than a third have been willing to participate in the campaign. He said many allies want to take part but lack the resources.
盖茨谈到了北约当前轰炸利比亚的行动。他指出，北约所有28个成员国都投票支持这次行动，但只有不到一半国家参与行动，同时只有不到三分之一国家愿意参与空袭行动。他表示，许多盟国希望参加行动但缺乏相关资源。
Last week NATO decided to extend its activities in Libya until the end of September.
上周，北约决定将其对利比亚的行动延长到9月底。
Mr. Gates said that by one estimate, European defense spending has fallen by nearly fifteen percent in the past ten years. He said this has affected what he called the first "hot" ground war in NATO history -- the war in Afghanistan.
盖茨表示，根据估计，在过去10年，欧洲防务开支降低了近15%。他说，这已经影响到被他称为北约历史上的首次“地面热战”的阿富汗地面行动。（注：所谓热战，是相对于冷战而言。）
ROBERT GATES: "Despite more than two million troops in uniform - not counting the US military - NATO has struggled, at times desperately, to sustain a deployment of twenty-five thousand to forty-five thousand troops, not just in boots on the ground, but in crucial support assets."
盖茨：“虽然北约有超过200万士兵--这还不包括美军。但北约一直在努力甚至一度是竭尽全力才能维持一项25000名到45000名士兵的部署。这不仅体现在地面部队，还体现在关键保障资源上。”
Mr. Gates said the American share of NATO defense spending has now risen to more than seventy-five percent. This is happening at a time when budget cuts are being considered in the United States. President Obama has called for an additional four hundred billion dollars in defense reductions.
盖茨说，美国承担的北约防务开支比例已经上升到超过75%。与此同时，美国也正考虑削减预算。奥巴马总统已经呼吁额外削减4000亿美元国防开支。
Mr. Gates said nations must be responsible for their fair share of the common defense. He warned about the future of NATO unless Europe stops cutting back on defense spending. He said there is "the very real possibility of collective military irrelevance" for the alliance. He said future American leaders may not consider the return on America's investment in NATO worth the cost.
盖茨表示各成员国必须承担共同防御的公平份额。他警告北约未来岌岌可危，除非欧洲各国停止削减国防开支。他说，北约的未来极其可能和共同防御脱离关系。他说，未来的美国领导人可能不会认为美国在北约的投入是值得的。
President Obama's choice to become the next defense secretary is Leon Panetta. Mr. Panetta is currently the director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The CIA job would go to David Petraeus, currently the top American general in Afghanistan, if the Senate approves the nominations.
奥巴马提名莱昂·帕内塔（Leon Panetta）担任下任国防部长。帕内塔是现任美国中央情报局局长。如果参议院批准这项提名，美国驻阿富汗的最高司令戴维·彼得雷乌斯（David Petraeus）将接任中央情报局局长一职。
President Obama wants to begin withdrawing American troops from Afghanistan next month. The goal is to end United States military operations in that country by the end of twenty-fourteen.
奥巴马希望从下个月开始从阿富汗撤军，其目标是在2014年底前，结束美国在阿富汗的军事行动。
On Thursday, the Senate Armed Services Committee held a confirmation hearing for Mr. Panetta. Several senators gave him credit for being the person President Obama named to head the effort that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden. Mr. Panetta said he believed the killing gave the United States the best chance to defeat al-Qaida since the attacks of September eleventh, two thousand one.
周四，美国参议院军事委员会为帕内塔举行听证会。几名参议员对他成为奥马巴任命的击毙本·拉登行动的负责人表示赞赏。帕内塔表示，他认为本·拉登之死给美国提供了自2001年9月11日恐怖袭击以来击败基地组织的最好机会。