英国女王2009圣诞致辞

The Queen has praised the sacrifice made by British service personnel and talked of the economic difficulties in her annual Christmas Day message.

In the pre-recorded message, delivered at 3pm, the Queen also devoted a considerable portion of the broadcast to the unique nature and benefits of the Commonwealth of nations.

【小编】英联邦（Commonwealth of Nations）是英国对联邦其他成员国在政治、军事、财政经济和文化上施加影响的组织。由英国和已经独立的前英帝国殖民地国家或附属国组成。

In an increasingly entangled world the Queen believes the Commonwealth has a unique role to play.

The Queen explained in the 522-word message how the Commonwealth transcends politics, religion, race and economic circumstances.

Finally, she spoke of this being a time of year to pause for thought.

The annual Christmas message is a tradition dating back to the early 20th century, instigated by her grandfather King George V, with a broadcast live on the radio from Sandringham more than 75 years ago.

【小编】女王发表致辞之际，正值驻阿英军经历2001年阿富汗战争以来伤亡最惨重的一年。这一年，驻阿英军已有106人死亡。这也是英军1982年马尔维纳斯群岛（英国称福克兰群岛）战争以来伤亡最惨重的一年。英国国防部宣布，驻阿英军士兵今年圣诞节期间可额外获得1小时与家人自由通话的时间，作为他们的"圣诞礼物"。