World leaders are racing against the clock in an attempt to forge a deal on climate change in Copenhagen that hinges on the resolving sharp differences between rich and poorer nations over emissions cuts and their monitoring.

世界领导人正与时间赛跑，试图在哥本哈根达成一项气候变化协议，该协议能否达成，关键是弥合富国和较贫穷国家之间在减排和减排监测问题上的严重分歧。

All eyes at the UN summit are on China and the US, the largest emitters of greenhouse gases and the two countries which will do most to decide whether a new global framework can be agreed. Barack Obama, the US president, and Wen Jiabao, the Chinese premier, are due to join the talks this morning to try to hammer out an agreement.

在联合国气候峰会上，各方的目光集中在中国和美国这两个最大的温室气体排放国身上，中美也是最能决定新全球框架能否达成的国家。美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)和中国总理温家宝定于今天上午参加谈判，以期敲定协议。

Such a deal would, most likely, be converted into a treaty next year and be the first to bind all countries to take action on climate change.

这样一项协议很有可能在明年转化为一份条约，它将是第一份迫使所有国家采取行动、应对气候变化的条约。

The 1997 Kyoto protocol was never ratified by the US, and made no demands on developing countries, notably China.

1997年的《京都议定书》从未得到美国的批准，也没有对发展中国家——尤其是中国——提出要求。

The US resolved one of the final key issues yesterday by agreeing to a global goal on financial assistance from the rich world to developing countries, of $100bn by 2020.

美国昨日解决了最后几个关键问题之一，同意把富国对发展中国家资助额的全球目标，设定为到2020年达到1000亿美元。

But Hillary Clinton, secretary of state, made it clear that the price of the US signing a deal would be for China and other developing countries to agree that their emissions curbs should be internationally monitored. “If there is not even a commitment to pursue transparency [on emissions cuts], that's kind of a dealbreaker for us,” she said.

但美国国务卿希拉里•克林顿(Hillary Clinton)明确表示，美国签署协议的条件是，中国及其它发展中国家必须同意在减缓排放方面接受国际监督。她表示：“如果连追求[减排]透明度的承诺都没有，那对我们来说就有点像一个阻碍达成协议的因素了。”

China said it was committed to transparency, but it remains unlikely that its plans to submit its emissions only to domestic monitoring would be enough.

中国表示自己将致力于做到透明，但它只让排放量接受国内监测的计划，可能不足以达成协议。

He Yafei, the vice foreign minister, said China was prepared to make its actions open, and to engage in “dialogue and co-operation” over its reporting of its emissions reduction measures.

中国外交部副部长何亚非表示，中国愿意公开自己的行动，并在报告减排措施方面参与“对话与合作”。

A deal at the summit could also be scuppered by smaller developing countries, which have been “obstructionist” according to some negotiators.

较小的发展中国家也可能令本次峰会的协议泡汤。一些谈判代表表示，这些国家在扮演“蓄意阻挠者”的角色。

译者/章晴