骆家辉大使宣布扩大驻武汉美国总领事馆的讲话（中英对照）

Remarks Announcing Expansion of U.S. Consulate General Wuhan<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

宣布扩大驻武汉美国总领事馆的讲话

Gary Locke

U.S. Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China

美国驻中华人民共和国大使骆家辉

U.S. Embassy, Beijing

美国驻北京大使馆

June 8, 2012

2012年6月8日

Good afternoon and welcome to the U.S. Embassy. As part of our continued effort to meet demand for U.S. visas and enhance services for American citizens, today I am delighted to announce a dramatic expansion of our Consulate General in Wuhan, to include full consular and visa services. We anticipate this expansion will allow us to process up to 200,000 visa applications per year in Wuhan, providing a faster and more convenient method of applying for a U.S. visa from central China. This move will also reduce the pressure on our Consulates in Shanghai and Guangzhou, and at the Embassy in Beijing, where most residents of central China currently travel for their visa interview. This expansion will also allow for more convenient consular services for American citizens residing in central China.

下午好，欢迎来到美国大使馆。作为我们满足对美国签证需求和加强为美国公民服务持续努力的一部分，今天我很高兴地宣布我们驻武汉总领事馆的大幅扩大，以包括完整的领事和签证服务。我们预计这次扩大将使我们每年在武汉能够处理高达200,000份的签证申请，为在中国中部申请美国签证提供更快、更方便的途径。此举也将减少我们驻上海和广州的领事馆以及驻北京的大使馆的压力，目前中国中部大部分居民的签证面谈要去以上地方。这种扩大也将使居住在中国中部的美国公民得到更方便的领事服务。

The process to begin offering consular, visa, and American citizen services in Wuhan has been ongoing. On April 24, the U.S. Embassy formally informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of this expansion. A team has already been dispatched to Wuhan to begin the process of identifying a suitable location for a new consulate facility. We are hopeful that the expansion will be completed by the summer of 2014.

开始在武汉提供领事、签证和美国公民服务的进程一直在进行。4月24日，美国大使馆正式通知外交部此次扩大。一个小组已被派往武汉，开始了为新领事馆设施确定合适位置的进程。我们希望此次扩大将于2014年夏天完成。

Demand for U.S. visa services in China continues to rise. Applications thus far in 2012 are up close to 45 percent over the same period in 2011. Despite the unprecedented rise in visa demand, applicants in China now wait an average of 10 days to schedule a visa interview, compared with over 50 days at this time last year.

在中国对美国签证服务的需求持续上升。与2011年同期相比，2012年迄今为止申请数量增长近45％。尽管签证需求空前高涨，与去年同期的50天以上相比，现在在中国，申请者平均等待10天以预约一次签证面谈。

Expanding visa and other consular services in Wuhan is just one of many steps the U.S. is taking to catch up with this demand. I am also happy to announce that here in Beijing we have reopened our previously-vacated consular section on Guanghua Lu, increasing our visa processing capacity in Beijing by 50 percent. We are also working on other facility upgrades and renovation projects, including expanding our consular sections in Shanghai and Chengdu. We are also looking into the possibility of expansion in Shenyang.

扩大在武汉的签证及其他领事服务仅仅是美国赶上这一需求的众多步骤之一。我还要很高兴地宣布，在北京这里，我们已经重新开放以前空出的光华路上的领事部门，将我们在北京的签证处理能力提高50％。我们也正从事其他设施的升级和整修项目，包括扩大我们在上海和成都的领事部门。我们还在考虑在沈阳扩大的可能性。

To further decrease wait times, we are in the process of adding up to 50 new consular officer positions in consular sections across China. We are also working to upgrade our visa appointment system, making it easier and more convenient for applicants to arrange visa interview appointments.

为了进一步减少等候时间，我们正在中国各地的领事部门中增加总共50个新的领事官职位。我们还正致力于升级我们的签证预约系统，使其对预约签证面谈的申请者来说变得更方便容易。

The U.S. Mission in China is committed to providing fair, courteous, and efficient visa services in China, while maintaining the safety and security of U.S. borders. The expansion of consular services in Wuhan and the new developments at our other consular sections around the country mark significant steps in realizing this commitment.

美国驻中国使团致力于在中国提供公平、周到、高效的签证服务，同时维护美国边境的安全与治安。武汉领事服务的扩大以及全国各地的其他领事部门的新发展，标志着我们在实现这一承诺上的重要步骤。

Thank you, and I’ll be happy to take your questions.

谢谢，我将很高兴地回答大家的提问。