US President Barack Obama and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi hugged each other and called their countries “natural” partners as they strengthened defence ties and sought to unblock an agreement on US investment in nuclear power stations for India.

美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)和印度总理纳伦德拉•莫迪(Narendra Modi)相互拥抱，称他们的国家为“天然”伙伴，两国领导人加强了防务关系，并争取达成美国投资印度核电站的协议。

Mr Obama’s three-day visit to India, which began on Sunday when he embraced Mr Modi after stepping off Air Force One, is being hailed by both sides as a sign that the world’s two biggest democracies are overcoming their historical differences and embarking on a new era of strategic and commercial co-operation.

奥巴马周日抵达印度展开为期3天的访问。他走下空军一号与莫迪拥抱的那一刻，被双方喻为标志着世界上两个最大的民主国家克服历史分歧，开启了战略和商业合作新纪元。

“The promise and potential of this relationship has never been in doubt,” Mr Modi told a joint news conference after talks with Mr Obama, whom he at times called by his first name, Barack. “This is a natural global partnership. It has become even more relevant in the digital age. It is needed even more in our world of far-reaching changes and widespread turmoil.”

莫迪与奥巴马会谈后在联合新闻发布会上表示：“两国关系的前景和潜力从未受到怀疑。两国是天然的全球伙伴，在数字化时代变得更加重要。当今我们所处的世界充满了深远变革和广泛动荡，尤其需要这种伙伴关系。”莫迪在讲话时多次直呼奥巴马的名字“巴拉克”。

Mr Obama, who is the first US president to visit India twice while in office and will be the first to attend the country’s Republic Day parade, said: “As two great democracies, two innovative economies, two societies dedicated to the empowerment of our people, including millions of Indian-Americans, we are natural partners.”

奥巴马是第一位在任期内两次访问印度的美国总统，还将是首位参加印度共和国日庆典的美国总统。奥巴马表示：“作为两大民主国家，两个创新经济体，两个致力于赋权于人民——包括数以百万计的印度裔美国人——的社会，我们是天然的伙伴。”

The US administration, which has awkward relationships with the authoritarian governments in China and Russia, is seeking to bolster its alliances in the Asia-Pacific by befriending India. Meanwhile, US investors see long-term potential in India’s 1.3bn people as the country’s economic growth accelerates.

与中国和俄罗斯的威权政府关系尴尬的奥巴马政府，正通过结交印度以加强其在亚太地区的联盟。与此同时，随着印度经济增长加速，美国投资者在印度13亿人口中看到了长期潜力。

For its part, India has close defence and political ties with Russia dating back to the cold war, but Mr Modi has tried to revitalise the relationship with the US since he was elected at the head of a Bharatiya Janata party government last May. New Delhi also has an uneasy relationship with Beijing, characterised by border disputes on the one hand and plentiful imports of Chinese goods on the other.

就印度而言，该国与俄罗斯有着密切的防务与政治关系，可追溯到冷战时期，但莫迪自去年5月当选印度人民党(Bharatiya Janata Party)政府的领导人以来，一直在努力重振与美国的关系。新德里与北京的关系也不和睦，一方面存在边界争端，另一方面是由于该国大量进口中国商品。

Mr Modi and Mr Obama agreed to improve co-operation in defence procurement and investment, civil nuclear power, counter-terrorism and international climate change negotiations. They will also establish a hotline for themselves and their national security advisers, according to Mr Modi.

莫迪和奥巴马同意加强在国防采购和投资、民用核能、反恐以及国际气候变化谈判方面的合作。据莫迪表示，他们两人及其国家安全顾问还将设立一条热线电话。