德国前外长施泰因迈尔当选总统
弗兰克-瓦尔特•施泰因迈尔(Frank-Walter Steinmeier)昨日当选德国新总统，标志着中间偏左的社民党(SPD)在今年晚些时候关键的议会选举之前取得一大胜利。
The choice of the country’s former foreign minister, a top SPD figure, to the largely ceremonial post comes at a time of renewed optimism in the party’s ranks following the appointment of Martin Schulz, former president of the European Parliament, as its new leader.
德国前外长、社民党头面人物当选基本上是象征性的联邦总统之际，社民党内部洋溢着新的乐观情绪，此前欧洲议会(Martin Schulz)前议长马丁•舒尔茨(Martin Schulz)被任命为该党的新党魁。
Polls suggest Mr Schulz could give Angela Merkel, long the dominant force in German politics, a real run for her money as she seeks a fourth term as chancellor. An Emnid survey in the Bild am Sonntag newspaper has the SPD on 32 per cent — its best result in 10 years — and Mr Schulz on 46 per cent. That puts him six percentage points ahead of Ms Merkel.
民意调查似乎表明，舒尔茨可能对德国政坛长期的主导力量、正在寻求第四个总理任期的安格拉•默克尔(Angela Merkel)构成真正的威胁。《周日图片报》(Bild am Sonntag)发表的Emnid民调显示，社民党的支持率为32%(这是该党10年来最好结果)，而舒尔茨个人的支持率达到46%，比默克尔领先6个百分点。
Mr Steinmeier, who was elected by members of the federal assembly, won 931 of 1,239 valid votes cast.
德国总统由联邦大会选举产生，施泰因迈尔赢得了1239张有效选票中的931票。
Germany was going through “stormy times” of great uncertainty, he said. “To many, the world . . . seems out of joint.” But, he added, the more the foundations of western democracy shook, “the more tightly we must hold on to them”.
他表示，德国正在经历充满巨大不确定性的“动荡时期”。“对很多人来说，世界……似乎乱套了。”但是，他补充说，西方民主制度的根基越是受到撼动，“我们就必须越是紧紧地抓住它们”。
“Isn’t it wonderful that this country has become an anchor of hope for many people in this world?” he said. Germany had shown how things could get better — “how after war can come peace, and after separation, reconciliation”.
“这个国家成为世界上众多人士的希望所在，这难道不是一个美妙之处吗?”他说。德国早已展示了事情如何能够变得更好——“战争之后能够迎来和平，分离之后能够实现和解”。
Mr Steinmeier’s election marks something of a tactical defeat for Ms Merkel, who reluctantly backed his nomination after failing to come up with her own candidate for the post.
施泰因迈尔的当选在某种意义上标志着默克尔的战术失败，此前她自己未能提出一个候选人，不情愿地支持施泰因迈尔获得提名。
In the end, the former foreign minister won the support of all the government parties — the conservative CDU-CSU bloc and the SPD — as well as the opposition Greens and FDP. However, many conservatives resented having to support a Social Democrat for president, especially in an election year.
最终，这位前外长赢得了执政联盟所有政党——保守派的基民盟/基社盟(CDU/CSU)集团和社民党——以及反对党绿党(Greens)和自由民主党(FDP)的支持。然而，许多保守派人士讨厌不得不支持一个社民党人出任总统，特别是在选举年。
As 12th president of the postwar federal republic, Mr Steinmeier will have the task of unifying a society that has rarely been so polarised. The arrival of more than 1m refugees since 2015 has fuelled resentment towards the political establishment and boosted support for the rightwing Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. Britain’s impending exit from the EU and the election of Donald Trump as US president also present huge challenges to the German view of Europe and the world.
作为战后联邦共和国的第12任总统，施泰因迈尔的任务将是团结一个很少像现在这样分化的社会。自2015年以来100多万难民涌入国境，助燃了对政治当局的不满，提振了右翼的德国新选择党(AfD)的人气。英国即将退出欧盟，而唐纳德•特朗普(Donald Trump)当选美国总统，也给德国对欧洲及世界的看法带来巨大挑战。
Yet Mr Steinmeier’s rise to the presidency deprives the government of one of its most experienced diplomats. He played a critical role in negotiating the nuclear deal between Iran and the west and was a key mediator in the Ukraine conflict. While he and Ms Merkel are on good terms, he went against her by calling for a relaxation of sanctions imposed on Russia after the annexation of Crimea and criticising Nato “sabre-rattling” against Moscow.
然而，施泰因迈尔升任总统，使德国政府失去了最有经验的外交官之一。他曾在谈判伊朗与西方的核协议中发挥了关键作用，并且是乌克兰冲突的一个关键调解人。尽管他和默克尔关系不错，但他曾和总理唱反调，要求放松在俄罗斯吞并克里米亚后对俄罗斯实施的制裁，还批评北约对莫斯科方面“炫耀武力”。
