【正文】 Business商業(yè)報(bào)道German weapons firms德國(guó)武器公司No farewell to arms不和武器說(shuō)再見Political pressure and bribery allegations are unlikely to hurt Germany39。s exporters of military equipment.看起來(lái)政治壓力和受賄指控都不會(huì)影響德國(guó)的軍事裝備出口公司。SINCE the second world war, Germany has rarely sent soldiers to bat zones.自二戰(zhàn)以來(lái)，德國(guó)幾乎不曾向戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)地區(qū)派兵。But it exports a lot of weapons: more than Britain, France or any other country besides America and Russia.然而它卻出口了大量武器：超過(guò)英國(guó)、法國(guó)以及除美國(guó)、俄羅斯之外的所有其他國(guó)家。Some German makers of military gear are part of civilian industrial giants, such as Airbus Group, and ThyssenKrupp, a steelmaker.德國(guó)的武器制造商中有些隸屬于私有的工業(yè)巨頭，比如空客集團(tuán)，還有鋼鐵制造商蒂森克虜伯集團(tuán)。But the biggest German pany known mainly for weapons, Rheinmetall, is just 26th in the world league of armsexporting firms.然而，即使是德國(guó)著名的以武器業(yè)務(wù)為主的公司中最大的萊茵金屬公司，在世界武器出口公司中也僅僅排在26位。And Krauss Maffei Wegmann, which makes the Leopard 2 tank, is 54th.而制造出豹2坦克的Krauss Maffei Wegmann則位居54位。Germans are, in general, proud of their export prowess.總的來(lái)說(shuō)，德國(guó)對(duì)自己的出口實(shí)力感到驕傲。But although foreign sales of weaponry bring in almost 1 billion a year, they are a delicate subject, and lately beset by bad press.但是盡管武器外貿(mào)帶來(lái)了將近10億歐元一年的利潤(rùn)，這是一項(xiàng)非常微妙的行業(yè)，并且近日承受的巨大壓力。Several German firms are accused of bribery in Greece.數(shù)家德國(guó)公司被指控在希臘行賄。A former defence official there has said that of 8m in bribes he took, came from German firms, including Wegmann and Rheinmetall.希臘一位前國(guó)防部官員曾說(shuō)，在他被行賄的800萬(wàn)歐元中有320萬(wàn)來(lái)自于德國(guó)公司，其中包括Wegman和萊茵金屬公司。On January 3rd KMW39。s alleged middleman was detained after a court hearing.在1月3日，一位宣稱的KMW中間人在庭審后被拘留。The firm itself denies any bribery.該公司自己否認(rèn)有行賄行為。, a maker of naval weapons owned jointly by Airbus and ThyssenKrupp, is under fire too.空客集團(tuán)和蒂森克虜伯共有的海軍武器制造商Atlas也正受到打擊。A former representative in Athens has reportedly admitted to bribery。 the pany says it is investigating the matter.一位前雅典代表在報(bào)道中承認(rèn)行賄；該公司則表示其正在進(jìn)行調(diào)查。On another front, the industry faces criticism over the countries it sells to—most recently over a deal to sell Leopard 2s to Saudi Arabia.另一方面，該產(chǎn)業(yè)因其售賣武器的對(duì)象而受到批評(píng)—最近是因?yàn)橄蛏程匕⒗u出豹2。Arms sales to anywhere other than NATO and NATOequivalent countries are in principle forbidden.向北約以及北約等同國(guó)家以外的國(guó)家和地區(qū)銷售武器從原則上說(shuō)是禁止的。But the Federal Security Council, headed by Chancellor Angela Merkel, can approve exceptions when foreign policy dictates, as long as they do not harm human rights.但是由總理安吉拉默克爾領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的聯(lián)邦安全局可以在外交政策需要時(shí)批準(zhǔn)一些特殊情況，只要他們對(duì)于人權(quán)沒(méi)有損害。Peace campaigners fear that the exceptions are being less exceptional.和平活動(dòng)者們擔(dān)心這些些特殊情況正變得越來(lái)越不特殊。NATO countries39。 budgets are being squeezed, so Germany39。s armsmakers are looking farther abroad.北約國(guó)家正緊縮財(cái)政，因而德國(guó)武器制造商們只能將目光轉(zhuǎn)向了遠(yuǎn)方的國(guó)家。Rheinmetall, for example, has a target of 50% of exports outside Europe by 2015.比如，萊茵金屬基團(tuán)計(jì)劃在2015年前將歐洲以外地區(qū)的出口比重提高到50%。Asia is a growing target: Singapore recently signed a billion deal for ThyssenKrupp submarines.亞洲是一個(gè)快速成長(zhǎng)的目標(biāo)：新加坡最近簽署了一份價(jià)值16億歐元的合同用于購(gòu)買蒂森克虜伯潛艇。German small arms are also popular. Heckler amp。amp。 Koch39。s G3 rifle is the world39。s most popular after the Russian AK47.德國(guó)的小型武器同樣很受歡迎。赫克勒科赫G3步槍的受歡迎程度僅次于俄國(guó)的AK47。Germany was a leader in pushing the UN to restrict the flow of small arms to wartorn countries.德國(guó)是推動(dòng)聯(lián)合國(guó)限制對(duì)戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)頻繁地區(qū)的小型武器出售的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者之一。But such weapons leak across borders nonetheless.盡管如此，此類武器依然會(huì)進(jìn)入這些地區(qū)。This is why Helmut Schmidt, a former chancellor, in December urged Germany to restrict arms exports, calling gun deaths a slowmotion Hiroshima and Nagasaki.這也是為何前總理赫爾穆特施密特在12月督促德國(guó)限制武器出口，他稱槍支引發(fā)死亡如同慢性的廣島和長(zhǎng)崎原子彈爆炸。His fellow Social Democrat, FrankWalter Steinmeier, promised to restrict sales if his party made it into government after last September39。s elections.他的社會(huì)民主黨同僚，弗蘭克沃爾特施泰因邁爾曾承諾如果去年9月選舉后其黨派成功執(zhí)政，就會(huì)限制武器出口。It did: Mr Steinmeier is now foreign minister, and sits on the Federal Security Council.這一條件已經(jīng)實(shí)現(xiàn)：施泰因邁爾現(xiàn)在是外交部長(zhǎng)，并任職于聯(lián)邦安全委員會(huì)。But Germany39。s arms exports are probably in little danger, since they have the same reputation for reliability as its cars and other industrial goods.但是德國(guó)的武器出口看似并無(wú)危險(xiǎn)，因?yàn)樗奈淦鳟a(chǎn)品在可靠性方面有著和汽車及其他工業(yè)產(chǎn)品一樣的好名聲。Even Pieter Wezeman of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, a critic of weapons sales, pares a Heckler amp。amp。 Koch gun to a highquality Leica camera.甚至斯特哥爾摩和平研究所的Pieter Wezeman，一位武器銷售的批評(píng)者，也將赫克勒科赫槍支比作質(zhì)量?jī)?yōu)異的徠卡相機(jī)。Though German soldiers mostly stay clear of bat zones, German weapons are battletested。 Leopard tanks in the former Yugoslavia and Afghanistan, for example.雖然德國(guó)士兵不曾踏足戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)區(qū)域，德國(guó)的武器可是經(jīng)過(guò)實(shí)戰(zhàn)檢驗(yàn)的；豹型坦克就曾現(xiàn)身前南斯拉夫和阿富汗。Moreover, there are ways to lessen the controversy of selling things used to wage war.此外，還有許多方法來(lái)減少戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)武器銷售的爭(zhēng)議性。For example, making guns for a fighter jet assembled elsewhere is less visible than selling a Germanmade tank.比如，為在其他地區(qū)組裝的戰(zhàn)斗機(jī)制造槍支同直接賣出德國(guó)制造的坦克相比要不顯眼許多。Military transport, logistics, surveillance and protective equipment together account for five times as much of German defence firms39。 output as weapons and ammunition—and are less likely to be blamed for civilian casualties.軍事運(yùn)輸設(shè)備、后勤物資、監(jiān)視和防護(hù)設(shè)備總計(jì)是德國(guó)國(guó)防公司武器和軍火出口額的5倍，而且這些生意不會(huì)受到引發(fā)平民死亡的譴責(zé)。Stephan Boehm, an analyst at Commerzbank, sees such nonlethal materiel as a bright spot for German exporters.德國(guó)商業(yè)銀行的分析師Stephan Boehm將這些非致密材料看做是德國(guó)出口的閃光點(diǎn)。The flagging fortunes of Rheinmetall, in particular, should be restored by strong sales of the armoured transporters it produces in a joint venture with MAN, a lorrymaker.需要指出的是，萊茵金屬公司的巨大財(cái)富中不少就源自于它和貨車制造商MAN聯(lián)合制造的裝甲運(yùn)輸車輛的良好銷量業(yè)績(jī)。Critics say the government is too willing to let arms firms export to dodgy regimes.不少批評(píng)認(rèn)為政府太想要將武器公司出口到過(guò)于冒險(xiǎn)的區(qū)域。The Federation of German Security amp。amp。 Defence Industries argues that strong exports are crucial to spread the development costs of the equipment Germany needs to defend itself.德國(guó)安全和國(guó)防工業(yè)聯(lián)合會(huì)爭(zhēng)辯說(shuō)繁榮的武器出口對(duì)于分擔(dān)德國(guó)發(fā)展國(guó)防設(shè)備的花費(fèi)至關(guān)重要。This would be less of a problem, the lobby group admits, if Europe39。s fragmented defence industry were consolidated。 it says the government should not have vetoed a proposal last year to merge EADS with BAE Systems of Britain.游說(shuō)者們也承認(rèn)，如果歐洲散亂的國(guó)防工業(yè)能得到統(tǒng)一的話，這個(gè)問(wèn)題就會(huì)小很多；他們還提到，政府不應(yīng)在去年否決EADS和英國(guó)的BAE System合并的提議。Weapons account for less than 1% of Germany39。s exports.武器出口在德國(guó)總出口中所占比重不足1%。But it is a 1% that it, like other countries, is loth to give up.但是如同其他國(guó)家一樣，德國(guó)無(wú)法割舍這1%。Business商業(yè)報(bào)道Cable television有線電視The 61 billion proposal耗資610億的提案The latest plot twists in a continuing television drama電視連續(xù)劇中最新的情節(jié)突轉(zhuǎn)SPURNED suitors usually nurse the wounds of rejection quietly.令人唾棄的起訴者通常悄然的治愈拒絕的傷口。 in the cabletelevision industry. Having unsuccessfully approached Time Warner Cable twice last year, Charter Communications, a riva