美国国防部长哈格尔辞职
Chuck Hagel has resigned as defence secretary in a major shake-up to a US national security team that has been beset by crises around the world.
查克•哈格尔(Chuck Hagel)已辞去美国国防部长职务。疲于应付世界各地危机的美国国家安全领导班子经受了重大改组。President Barack Obama has faced considerable pressure to reshuffle his senior national security officials against a backdrop of widespread criticism that the administration has fumbled its response to crises from Ukraine to Iraq.
巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)总统近来面临相当大的压力，要求改组他的高级国家安全官员。目前的大背景是，奥巴马政府受到广泛的批评，被指搞砸了对从乌克兰到伊拉克的一个又一个危机的回应。
The only Republican in Mr Obama’s cabinet, Mr Hagel is the first high-level official to leave the administration after the Democrats were roundly defeated in midterm elections earlier this month and lost control of the Senate.
作为奥巴马内阁中唯一的共和党人，哈格尔是民主党本月初在中期选举中全面败北、失去参议院控制权之后，第一个离开行政当局的高级别官员。
Mr Hagel, whose resignation was announced yesterday morning by Mr Obama, is to remain at the Pentagon until a successor is confirmed.
哈格尔辞职的消息昨日上午由奥巴马宣布，他将留在五角大楼，直到继任者得到确认。The president brought Mr Hagel, a senior former senator, to the Pentagon in 2013 with a brief to manage the withdrawal from Afghanistan and to build political support for cuts to the defence budget. A Vietnam veteran who enlisted for the war and was awarded two purple hearts, Mr Hagel had considerable credibility with the rank-and-file.
奥巴马在2013年请哈格尔这位资深前参议员执掌五角大楼，其任务是管理美军从阿富汗撤出，并构建削减国防预算的政治支持。作为当年应征入伍参加越战、并两次获得紫心勋章的老兵，哈格尔在美军官兵中拥有较高威信。However, his low-key approach has been criticised at a time when the US has been pulled back into fighting in Iraq, against the Islamist militants of Isis.
然而，在美军不得不重返伊拉克作战、打击“伊拉克和黎凡特伊斯兰国”(ISIS)伊斯兰主义武装分子之际，他的低调做法受到批评。Reflecting a commonly held view in the Pentagon, Mr Hagel has privately pushed for the administration to do more to confront the Assad regime in Syria as part of the anti-Isis campaign.
哈格尔私下里力主奥巴马政府采取更多行动对抗叙利亚的阿萨德政权，作为打击ISIS战役的一部分，这反映了五角大楼普遍持有的观点。Mr Hagel has acknowledged that the air strikes against Isis in Syria could be boosting the position of the Assad regime forces.
哈格尔承认，对叙利亚境内的ISIS武装分子发起空中打击，可能在战场上有利于阿萨德政权部队。Military officials have also complained that the White House is eager to micromanage operations against Isis.
军方官员还抱怨称，白宫对打击ISIS的军事行动管得太细。Mr Obama described Mr Hagel as an “exemplary” secretary of defence who showed “class and integrity”.
奥巴马形容哈格尔是“模范”国防部长，展现出“水平和诚信”。The resignation leaves Mr Obama looking for his fourth defence secretary. One widely mentioned potential successor is Michèle Flournoy.
哈格尔的辞职意味着奥巴马将物色任内第四个国防部长。被广泛提及的潜在继任者之一是米歇尔•弗卢努瓦(Michèle Flournoy)。She was the third-ranking official at the Pentagon in Mr Obama’s first term and would be the first woman to lead the defence department. Other names discussed include Ashton Carter, former deputy secretary of defence, and Jack Reed, a Democratic senator.
她是奥巴马第一个任期内的五角大楼三号人物，请她出山将造就首位女性国防部长。其他人选包括前国防部副部长阿什顿•卡特(Ashton Carter)，以及民主党参议员杰克•里德(Jack Reed)。The departure of Mr Hagel threatens to set up a stand-off with the new Republican-controlled Congress over his successor.
哈格尔的离去可能使奥巴马政府与共和党控制的新一届国会围绕他的继任者陷入对峙。
