Since May, Chinese officials have been counselling, cajoling, even banning state companies and government agencies from buying US high-tech goods, while the state press has lambasted America’s tech giants as “pawns” of the country’s intelligence agencies.
自5月以来，中国官员一直在建议、劝诱乃至规定国企和政府部门不能购买美国的高科技产品，同时官方媒体一直在猛轰美国科技巨头，称它们为美国情报机构的“爪牙”。
In the shadow of spying allegations being hurled by both sides, talks between officials of both countries at the US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue got under way yesterday in Beijing. The thorny issue of US corporate access to Chinese consumers will be a key topic of discussion, and the dispute demonstrates how far apart the two sides are.
在双方都指责对方从事间谍活动的阴影下，美中战略与经济对话(US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue)昨日在北京拉开帷幕。美国企业能否接触到中国消费者的棘手问题，将是本轮对话的关键议题，而双方的纠纷凸显出分歧之大。
So far, say many US businessmen privately, China is just escalating a war of words. But few doubt Beijing’s intention behind them. Following revelations from former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden about the US technology sector’s alleged complicity in spying, China has decided to act decisively to buy more locally and rely less on large tech companies such as IBM, Hewlett-Packard and Cisco.
许多美国商界人士私下表示，迄今中国只是在强化言辞战。但北京这样做背后的意图是几乎无人怀疑的。曾为美国国家安全局(NSA)合同工的爱德华•斯诺登(Edward Snowden)此前爆料称，美国科技业涉嫌协助间谍活动。此后，中国决定果断采取行动，加大本土采购，减少对IBM、惠普(HP)和思科(Cisco)等科技巨擘的依赖。