Unit 8 British Foreign Relations (英国的外交关系)

Unit 8 British Foreign Relations (英国的外交关系)

一、本单元重点内容

1. Active in setting up the United Nations (积极推进联合国的成立)

2. Foreign policy influenced by its history and geopolitical traits

(受其历史和地缘政治影响的外交政策)

3. Long-term physical separation from the European continent (长期与欧洲大陆隔绝)

4. The involvement of the Foreign and Common wealth Office (英国外交与联邦事务部的参与)

5. The Treasury (财政部)

6. The permanent member of the UN Security Council [(英国)是联合国常任理事国之一]

7. The member of the European Union (欧盟成员国之一)

8. The member of the Commonwealth (英联邦的成员国)

9. The special relationship with the United States (与美国的特殊关系)

10. The presence of superpower bases in Britain （在英国存在超级大国的军事基地）

11. Its participation in NATO [积极参与北约(北大西洋公约组织)的活动]

二、本单元重、难点辅导

1. the British empire and its end

The Britain used to rule 1/3 of the globe and thus became a great empire in the world. After the WWII, the British empire began to decline as more and more former colonies declared their political independence. Throughout the next few decades, the process of decolonization continued, though sometimes the process was full of violence. The end of the great British empire was inevitable. Today the age of British imperialism is gone. But the British foreign policy is still influenced by Britain’s imperial past. An d because it had a strong military power and prestige, it had a big influence on the postwar international order. (*Some former colonies—Australia and Canada— still looked to Britain as the center of their political and cultural world.)

2. the foundations of British foreign policy

The contemporary foreign policy of the UK is greatly influenced by its imperial history and also by its geopolitical traits(地缘政治特点). 1）As Britain lost its empire so recently, British policy-makers frequently forget that Britain is not as influential as it used to be in world affairs. 2）Another decisive influence upon the way Britain handles its external affairs is geopolitical. As Britain is an island, it has created a sense of isolation in its subjects, which results in Britain’s schizophrenic(精神分裂的，反复无常的) attitude to Europe. (But Britain’s physical isolation has long been reduced by the development of airlines and more recently by the opening of the Channel Tunnel, which links Britain to continental Europe)

当代英国的外交政策很大程度上受其帝国主义历史和地缘政治特点的影响。由于英国失去其帝权的时间还不长，英国的决策者们经常会忘记英国在世界事务中已经不如从前那样有

影响力了这一事实。影响英国处理外事的的另一决定性因素是其地缘政治特点。英国岛国的地理位置使那里的居民产生了一种心理上的孤独感,这导致英国对于欧洲的态度反复无常。（但是这个问题由于飞机的发明和联系英国与欧洲大陆的海底隧道的开通而得到缓解。）

3. the making of Britain’s foreign policy 英国外交政策的制定

The general direction of Britain’s foreign policy is mainly decided by the Prime Minister and Cabinet. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)(英国联邦与国际事务部), the main governme nt department, plays a significant role in the making of Britain’s foreign policy. Many other government ministries such as the Ministry of Defence and the Department of Trade and Industry also play a part in formulating and carrying out the government’s d ecisions. But an extremely influential player in Britain’s foreign policy is the Treasury. The Treasury makes decisions on how much money other departments can have each year.

英国外交政策的总体方向主要由首相和其内阁决定. 英国政府的主要部门，英国联邦与国际事务部, 在制定英国的外交政策方面起着重要的作用。许多其它的政府部门，比如，国防部，贸易与工业部在制定和执行政府的决议中也起着重要作用。但是对英国的外交政策影响极大的一个部门就是财政部。其它部门每年可以花费的金额由财政部来决定。

* Britain is parliamentary democracy, the government’s foreign policy in theory represents the desires of its electorate.

4. Britain’s relationship with international institutions

1) one of the 5 permanent members of the UN Security Council (联合国安理会常任理事国) — Russia, China, the US, France and the UK

2) its membership in the European Union (Britain joined the European Economic Community in 1973, which has been called European Union since 1993. Britain’s participation in the EU remains controversial. At the center of the controversy is the fact that it is not clear about what the EU is and what it will become. The UK has always been interested in encouraging free trade between countries and is therefore very supportive of the EU as a free trade area. Britain likes to regard the EU as place where economic cooperation is possible and where a flow of trained personel and goods are possible. But Britain ha always been less enthusiastic about giving up its national sovereignty to a European government.)

英国于1973年加入欧洲经济共同体,1993年,欧共体被更名为欧盟.英国加入欧盟一事备受争议.争议的焦点是:关于欧盟的本质是什么,发展方向是什么,都不清楚.英国一直积极鼓励国与国之间的自由贸易，因此比较倾向于把欧盟看作是一个自由贸易区。英国喜欢把欧盟看作是一个可以进行经济合作的地方，人员和商品都可以自由流通的地方。但是英国一直不愿意放弃自己的国家主权去听命于欧洲政府。

3) involvement in NATO (The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was set up in 1949. The author believes that the purpose of NATO is to protect member states against aggression, to provide a foundation for security in Europe, and to provide a forum for transatlantic defense cooperation.)英国国防政策的核心就是它加入北大西洋公约组织。北约是1949年成立的。作