關注社會:米特·羅姆尼的外國之旅

The Republican's visit to three key allies is all about domestic, not foreign, politics.

共和黨人訪問盟國的三個關鍵詞是民主、開放和政治。

TO HEAR Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential candidate, describe the world, Barack Obama's approach to foreign policy is a failure in two halves. Towards America's enemies and rivals, the charge goes, Mr Obama has proved weak, naive and apologetic. When dealing with friends and allies, the president is accused of being chilly and unreliable. This week the presumptive nominee embarked on a foreign trip designed to drive home that argument, involving three carefully chosen allies; Britain, Poland and Israel.

據聞共和黨的總統候選人米特·羅姆尼將責任總統巴拉克·奧巴馬對外政策兩個部分都說成是失敗。在對待美國的敵人和競爭對手時美國已經失去掌控權，這證明奧巴馬爲人軟弱、幼稚、謙卑。在對待美國的朋友和盟友時，總統顯得麻木、不可靠。本週這位假定的總統候選提名人開始了一次旨在拉開辯論大幕的對外訪問，他將造訪三個精心選擇的國家：英國、波蘭和以色列。

Bowing to the importance of generating favourable images back home, Mr Romney intended to use his swing through Britain to meet American competitors at the London Olympics and attend the opening ceremony on July 27th, where Michelle Obama, the first lady, will also be present. He will see David Cameron and other senior ministers, as well as the leader of the opposition. Bowing to the tradition that American politicians do not pursue domestic squabbles when overseas, Mr Romney made sure to attack his Democratic rival just before he left. He used a speech to ex-servicemen in Nevada to charge Mr Obama with such failings as coddling Russia at the expense of NATO allies such as Poland, blinking in the face of unfair Chinese trade practices, playing politics with troop numbers in Afghanistan and above all lecturing and undermining Israel's leaders to the delight of its enemies.

羅姆尼很清楚給國內選民製造一個好的映象重要性，他打算在訪英期間會晤美國奧運會代表團的成員，還要參加7月27日的奧運會開幕式；而現任第一夫人米歇爾·奧巴馬也會參加形式。他將會見大衛·卡梅倫和其他內閣成員，也將會見反對黨領袖。遵循美國政治家在對外訪問期間不在國內問題上起口角的傳統，羅姆尼確信奧巴馬會在他離開期間對自己展開攻勢。他在內華達州曾對退伍軍人發表了一個演講，其中例數了奧巴馬的種種敗績：新近俄羅斯而冷落了波蘭這些北約盟國，對中國不公平貿易行爲視而不見，在對阿富汗政策和駐軍問題上朝三暮四，通過演講損害以色列的領導人並取悅它的敵人。

In June Mr Romney told an evangelical[1] Christian group that his approach to Israel would be “by and large…the opposite” of Mr Obama's. On the eve of the candidate's trip, leading Romney supporters declared it a disgrace that Mr Obama had not been to Israel in his almost four years as president. A Florida congresswoman, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, noted that the president had found time to visit other countries in the Middle East, suggesting darkly that Americans could “only speculate” as to what lay behind this choice. Irked, the Obama campaign retorted that if reelected, Mr Obama had promised to visit Israel in his second term, and that Ronald Reagan never once made it there as president.

6月時，羅姆尼對一個福音派基督教團體說，他在對待以色列的政策上將會“大體上與奧巴馬的政策相反”。在這位選人出訪的前夕，羅姆尼的主要支持者們發表講話說，奧巴馬任職四年來竟然沒有訪問過以色列，這可真丟人。佛羅里達州的女議員雷婷恩·羅絲-萊赫蒂寧指出，總統只有訪問中東的時間，即暗示美國人僅能通過“推測”得知這背後的意義。奧巴馬競選陣營被激怒了反駁說，如果奧巴馬再次當選，在其第二任期內必要訪問以色列的；他們還說羅納德·里根任總統8年裏就沒有訪問過以色列。

Senior figures in such friendly countries as Britain and Poland do not really recognise the first half of Mr Romney's complaint, that Mr Obama is a notable pushover on national security. Besides, when it comes to the details that concern allies, such as the timing of troop withdrawals from Afghanistan or the scope of sanctions to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, Mr Romney has not committed himself publicly to more hawkish plans than Mr Obama. Security and intelligence co-operation between America and Israel is as deep as it has ever been.

英國和波蘭等友邦的資深政治家並不真地認可羅姆尼的前一半抱怨，他們認爲奧巴馬在推進國家安全上很有成效。此外，在例如從阿富汗撤軍的時機和壓制伊朗對核武器的野心等涉及到有關盟國的結節問題上，羅姆尼尚未公開表現出如奧巴馬那樣的鷹派立場。美以間安全和情報合作的深入程度並未被動搖。

But the second half of Mr Romney's charge resonates much more; that Mr Obama has been a chilly ally, seeming to set little store by personal relations with fellow leaders or displays of affection for friendly countries. In the case of Britain, sources say, Mr Obama's relative recent warmth towards Mr Cameron is in part an acknowledgment that his predecessor, Gordon Brown, was mishandled, as the president dismissed British demands for reassurance and access. The traditionally Atlanticist Poles felt sidelined not just by the policy implications of Mr Obama's “reset” of relations with Russia, but by the brusque way in which they were told to play along. Above all, Israeli nerves, as well as those of the Jewish community in America, were jangled by Mr Obama's perceived coolness towards Israel, exemplified by his early attempts to reach out to Arab and Muslim public opinion.

羅姆尼的後一半抱怨卻引起了較多地的共鳴。奧巴馬對盟友有點冷淡，似乎不太重視與其他盟國領導人的私人關係，也沒有對友邦表現出友善。消息人士說，在對英關係上，奧巴馬最近對卡梅倫比較熱情，這部分地說明他承認在對待英國前首相戈登•布朗上確有不妥，即拒絕了英國對於安慰和訪問的要求。波蘭人是傳統的大西洋主義者。不僅在奧巴馬的“重置”和對俄羅斯關係上保持觀望，而且在對粗暴地要求他們參與其中上也保持觀望。最重要的是，奧巴馬對待以色列的冷淡態度牽動了以色列以及美國猶太人的祖業，例如他在競選初期便觸及阿拉伯和穆斯林公衆等輿論。

The world has moved on since the time, four years ago, when Mr Obama was able to draw acrowd of around 200,000 to a speech in Berlin as a mere candidate. Yet even allowing for that, Mr Romney is not likely to generate much excitement. Even in Israel, where relations between Mr Obama and the prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, remain wary, Mr Netanyahu will not offer Mr Romney anything resembling an endorsement during his visit. It is a core tenet[2] of Israeli policy to maintain bipartisan support in America.

世界發生了許多變化，4年前奧巴馬在作爲總統候選人在柏林發表演講時能夠吸引20萬人到場。羅姆尼對此也讚許有加，但自己卻不能再造這樣一個激動人心的情景。在以色列方面，奧巴馬與以色列總理本雅明·內搭尼亞胡的關係仍然令人擔心：內搭尼亞胡不會在羅姆尼訪問期間對其表示支持。維持美國兩大政黨對自己的支持是以色列的核心原則。

In short, Mr Romney's argument about Mr Obama's diplomatic stance is only half fair. But then it is an argument intended for domestic consumption, as part of a broader charge that Mr Obama is aloof and out of touch with the country he leads. As always when presidential candidates travel abroad, Mr Romney's trip is about votes, not diplomacy. If the Republican looks and sounds like an American statesman abroad, and, most important, avoids any obvious gaffes, his tour will have served its purpose.

簡而言之，羅姆尼關於奧巴馬外交立場的言論只有一半是公正的。指責奧巴馬置美國於不顧只是要引起國內輿論的關注。正如以往的總統候選人出國訪問一樣，羅姆尼這次的旅程只是爲了賺取選票而並非真的外交工作。如果這位共和黨人看起來和聽起來都像是一個出訪的美國政治家，而且最重要的是，他能避免任何明顯的失誤，那麼他的巡演已經達到了初衷。