美國侯任總統特朗普正面臨當選以來最大規模的批評聲浪，當地時間2日他與臺灣地區領導人蔡英文通電話引來國內外的抨擊、質疑和嘲諷。特朗普在推特上強調電話是蔡英文打給他的，且主要談話內容是祝賀，但他這一舉動打破了美臺1979年“斷交”以來37年的外交慣例，釋放出嚴重的錯誤信號。美國國內有人擔心激怒北京，也有人不滿特朗普不懂外交以至于犯下“菜鳥的錯誤”，白宮則迅速澄清“美國的兩岸政策沒有變化”。中國已向美方提出“嚴正交涉”，外長王毅表示，“這只是臺灣方面搞的一個小動作，根本不可能改變國際社會已經形成的一個中國格局”。事實上，出于保密等原因，各國領導人之間通電話有一套十分復雜的程序需要遵守，下面我們就一起來看看。

Hi, it's Putin, is Obama in?
嗨，我是普京，奧巴馬在嗎？

"Hello, can I speak to the president?" is not an off-the-cuff request an operator is ever likely to hear from a world leader.
電話接線員不可能從世界領導人那里聽到像是“你好，我能和總統講話嗎？”這樣冒失的請求的。

By the time the initial pleasantries are exchanged between heads of state, the groundwork will have been done behind the scenes by the leaders' respective staff.
在元首們互相寒暄之前，各方的工作人員要做好準備工作。

"When there is an established relationship between two countries, it might be as simple as one situation room calling its counterpoint and saying my head of state wants to speak to yours," says Stephen Yates, who worked as deputy national security adviser to former US Vice-President Dick Cheney.
前美國副總統迪克?切尼的副國家安全顧問史蒂芬?耶茨表示，“如果兩國建立了外交關系，那么元首間通電話可能就和戰情室的通話一樣簡單，可以說我國領導人希望和貴國領導人通話。”

When countries are in less frequent contact, an ambassador may make the first formal request on their leader's behalf. They will set out the proposed agenda and reasons for the call and, if agreed, the reciprocal team would then work it into busy schedules.
當兩國接觸不頻繁時，一國大使可能會代表本國領導人首先提出正式請求。他們將提出議程安排和通話理由，如果獲得同意的話，雙方團隊就會將通話排進繁忙的日程表。

A helping hand for big issues and small talk
重大問題和閑談都需要助手

World leaders are typically well briefed before speaking to each other.
世界領導人在互相交談之前通常都詳細了解了情況。

In the US, the president is given a dossier from the National Security Council (NSC), the principal US advisory body on national security and foreign policy.
在美國，為總統提供相關材料的是國家安全委員會，這是美國國家安全和外交政策的主要咨詢機構。

If it is a simple courtesy call, the information provided may be basic, including details on who initiated contact, and two or three recommended talking points. There may also be some need-to-know personal information, such as a reminder to ask after a sick husband or wife.
如果只是簡單的問候電話，可能需要提供的基本信息包括通話發起人是誰以及兩三個建議的話題。有時也可能要了解一些個人信息，例如，如果對方丈夫或妻子生病了，需要提醒本國元首問候一下。

If the topic is sensitive, the NSC will offer the president an additional short briefing, and then listen in on the call.
如果通話話題很敏感，國家安全委員會將為總統額外提供一份簡報，然后在總統旁邊聽他們通話。

Are we alone now?
現在只有我們嗎？

World leaders usually have various people listening in on their conversations, including aides and interpreters.
通常會有很多人在世界領導人對話時在旁邊聽著，其中包括總統助手和翻譯。

Even when leaders speak another language fluently, they often choose to conduct official calls in their mother tongue.
即使領導人能夠流利地說另一種語言，他們也會在正式的通話中使用母語。

"Sometimes that is down to national pride, but it's also to avoid misunderstandings and protect nuance," says Kevin Hendzel, a former White House linguist.
前白宮語言專家凱文?亨德爾表示，“這關系到民族自豪感，也是為了避免誤解，同時保留語言中的細微差別?！?

US presidential translators will have passed security clearances, background checks and even sat polygraph tests, before they become privy to sensitive information involved in high-level diplomacy.
美國總統的翻譯在獲準接觸高層外交中的敏感信息之前，必須通過安全審查、背景調查，甚至還包括謊言測試。

"There are no novices that work at the presidential level," says Mr Hendzel. "It takes a great deal of time for an interpreter to reach this stage. They are also experts in the subject matter, and they know getting a form of address wrong can be a deal breaker."
亨德爾稱，“為總統工作的沒有新手，一名翻譯要經過很久才能做到這個級別。他們是這方面的專家，他們很清楚差之毫厘，謬以千里?！?

'I am Hillary Clinton, honestly, I am'
“我真的是希拉里?！?/strong>

"It's apples and oranges when you are comparing transitional calls by a president-elect to those of a head of state in the Oval Office," says Mr Yates.
耶茨稱，“對比過侯任總統在交接期間的通話過程和成為總統后的通話后，你會發現兩者完全沒有可比性?！?/p>

Once Mr Trump is in the hot seat, all his calls will be highly secure and heavily vetted.
一旦特朗普坐上這個責任重大的位置，他所有的通話都將高度保密、嚴加審查。

"The president will feel like he has just picked up the phone, like any other call, but the call will have been through multiple checks to ensure its fidelity," says Mr Yates.
“總統會覺得他剛接起的電話和所有電話一樣，但這通電話的真實性將會得到多次確認?！?/p>

Sometimes this vetting process can be so tight, the wrong people get cut off. "I am fighting w[ith] the WH operator who doesn't believe I am who I say," wrote exasperated Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a 2010 email.
有時，這個審查程序可能過于嚴格，以至于會掛錯電話。國務卿希拉里曾在2010年的一封電郵中憤怒地寫道：“我正在和不相信我是誰的白宮電話接線員吵架?！?/p>

Presidents get pranked, too
總統們也會被整

Prank calls to presidents are rare, but not unheard of.
總統很少收到惡作劇電話，但也不是沒有。

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy fell victim to hoax in January, when a radio presenter phoned imitating the new separatist leader of Catalonia.
西班牙首相馬里亞諾?拉霍伊今年一月就上當受騙了，當時一個電臺主持人模仿加泰羅尼亞的分離主義新領導人打電話給他。

In 2003, a US radio station based in Miami scored the double, when it tricked both the then Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his close ally, the former leader of Cuba, Fidel Castro.
2003年，邁阿密的美國電臺更加厲害，他們同時騙到了時任委內瑞拉總統烏戈?查韋斯和他的親密盟友前古巴領導人菲德爾?卡斯特羅。

Radio El Zol first called Chavez, pretending to be Castro, and then called Castro masquerading as Chavez. When the Cuban realised he had been tricked, he unleashed a torrent of swearwords.
El ZOL電臺首先假扮卡斯特羅給查韋斯打電話，然后冒充查維斯打給卡斯特羅。當卡斯特羅意識到自己被騙之后，他破口大罵。

The hotline that is not a phone
熱線電話不是一部電話

The Moscow-Washington hotline, often referred to the "red telephone", is a special, highly secure system that allows direct communication between the leaders of the United States and Russia.
莫斯科-華盛頓熱線通常被稱為“紅色電話”，它是允許美俄領導人直接溝通的高度安全的特殊系統。

"Contrary to the myths, it's not actually a phone," explains Kevin Hendzel, who worked as senior technical linguist on the project in the 1980s.
上世紀80年代曾擔任高級技術語言專家的凱文?亨德爾解釋道，“與傳說不同，實際上熱線電話不是一部電話?！?

The line, used to send text and images (maps, diagrams etc), was developed after the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when the two countries came close to a nuclear war.
1962年古巴導彈危機讓美俄兩國走向了核戰爭的邊緣，此后，兩國開通了這條用于發送文字和圖像（地圖，圖表等）的專線。

It remains an open channel, allowing instant communication if needed. "Because when it comes to nuclear missiles, everything is measured in minutes," says Mr Hendzel.
“熱線電話”是在必要情況下可以進行即時通信的開放渠道。 亨德爾說：“因為涉及到核導彈時，一切都是按分鐘計算的。”

Vocabualry

off-the-cuff: 脫口而出的，即興的
privy to: 準許知情
hot seat: 責任重大的位置
fidelity: 保真度，準確度
prank: 玩笑

英文來源：BBC
翻譯：董靜
編審：yaning