VOA慢速英语:French President's Visit to US Strengthens Ties

Relations between the United States and France appeared to grow stronger this week after President Francois Hollande visited Washington. President Barack Obama welcomed the French leader by taking him on Monday to Charlottesville, Virginia. They visited Monticello, the 18th century house designed and built by Thomas Jefferson, America's third president. Jefferson was also one of the writers of the Declaration of Independence and served as America's representative to France from 1785 to 1789.
本周，法国总统弗朗索瓦•奥朗德访问华盛顿之后美、法关系加强了。为了欢迎这位法国领导人,奥巴马总统周一带他到了弗吉尼亚州夏洛茨维尔市。他们参观了蒙蒂塞洛，这是美国第三任总统托马斯•杰斐逊于十八世纪设计建造的房子。杰斐逊也是独立宣言的作者之一，并于1785年到1789年期间担任驻法国大使。

President Obama told President Hollande that Monticello is an example of what he called the "incredible history" between the United States and France. Thomas Jefferson loved France, and was a supporter of the French Revolution. As Mr. Obama noted, France supported Britain's North American colonies as they fought for independence.
奥巴马总统告诉佛朗德总统，蒙蒂塞洛是他所谓美、法之间传奇历史的一个例子。托马斯•杰斐逊爱法国，并且是法国大革命的支持者。奥巴马先生指出，在作为前英国北美殖民地的美国争取独立时，法国也给予了支持。

"All this is signified here at Monticello and our hope in starting our visit in this way is that just as we can extend back through generations to see the links between the United States and France, tomorrow we will have an opportunity to talk about not only our current bonds and alliance, but also ways we can strengthen our cooperation in the future."
“所有一切都在蒙蒂塞洛有迹可循。我们以这种方式开始访问是希望，正如我们可以延续数代见证法国和美国之间的联系，明天我们就有机会不仅谈谈我们目前的债券和联盟，而且还能谈谈加强我们未来合作的途径。”

President Hollande also spoke to reporters during his visit to Monticello. He noted how a Frenchman, the Marquis de Lafayette, assisted the colonial forces during the American Revolution.
奥朗德总统还在出访蒙蒂塞洛时对记者发表讲话。他指出，法国人拉法耶特侯爵在美国革命期间如何协助当时的英属殖民势力。

"We were allies in the time of Jefferson and Lafayette, we are indeed still allies today. We were friends in the time of Jefferson and Lafayette and we will remain friends forever."
“我们在杰斐逊和拉法耶特时期就已结盟，今天我们还是盟友。在杰斐逊和拉法耶特时期我们是朋友，我们也将永远是朋友。”

President Hollande spent the second day of his state visit in Washington. He received the traditional ceremonial welcome to the White House before opening talks with President Obama.
奥朗德总统国事访问的第二天访问了华盛顿。在和奥巴马总统举行会谈之前，他接受了白宫的传统欢迎仪式。

Two newspapers, Le Monde and The Washington Post, published an opinion piece written by the two men. They wrote about a modern relationship marked by expansion. They said it includes more cooperation in NATO, agreement to remove chemical weapons from Syria and to prevent al-Qaida from gaining more influence in Africa.
世界报和华盛顿邮报两份报纸刊登了两位总统共同撰写的评论文章。他们写到了以扩张为特征的现代关系。他们称，这包括在北约、去除叙利亚化学武器的协议和防止基地组织在非洲赢得更大影响力方面加强合作。

Tuesday night, the French president was honored at a state dinner. More than 300 people were invited to the White House. The dinner guests included top US officials, business leaders and movie stars.
周二晚上，法国总统受邀出席了美国国宴。超过300人被邀请到白宫。晚宴嘉宾包括美国高级官员、商界领袖和电影明星。

The White House was forced to reprint invitations to the state dinner after Mr. Hollande announced a break-up with his former partner last month.
在奥朗德上个月宣布中断同前女友的关系后，白宫被迫重印了国宴邀请函。

After the dinner, the French leader flew to California, which is considered the center of American information technology. There he met with leaders of several IT companies, including Facebook and Google. At a gathering in San Francisco, Mr. Hollande noted, "It is here in California that the world of tomorrow is being invented." He added that "For centuries, France has wanted to change the world. Together, we can."
在晚餐后，法国领导人飞赴加利福尼亚州，这里被认为是美国的信息技术中心。在那里，他会见了几家IT公司领导人，其中包括脸书和谷歌公司。在旧金山的一次聚会上，奥朗德指出，“正是这里在创造世界的明天。”他补充说，“几个世纪以来，法国一直想要改变世界。我们一起就能做到。”

The French president has invited President Obama to France in June for ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of the D-Day invasion in Normandy. That was when Western Allied forces began an effort to free mainland Europe from occupation by Nazi Germany and its allies. France will also lead a climate conference next year. Both leaders say they are repeating their promise to lead the world in dealing with climate change.
法国总统已经邀请奥巴马总统六月份到法国参加诺曼底登陆战70周年纪念。自那次登陆战西方联军开始致力于解放被纳粹德国及其盟友占领的欧洲大陆。法国也将于明年举行世界气候大会。两国领导人称，他们是在践行自己引领世界应对气候变化的诺言。