1·"The situation is really dire," says a Western diplomat.
“局势真的很可怕，”一位西方外交官说。
2·"This was an election in name only," says a Western diplomat.
“这只是名义上的选举，”一位西方外交官说。
3·"Everyone is buying into this fear of what comes next," says one western diplomat.
“大家都在担心接下来会发生什么，”一名西方外交官表示。
4·A senior western diplomat in unhealthy Delhi told methat at any given time, half his staff is ill with serious maladies.
一个在德里的年长的西方外交官告诉我，无论是什么时候，他总是有一半职员患着重病。
5·"There was a time when they wouldn't do this, when the rule of law meant something," sighs a Western diplomat in Bangkok.
曼谷的西方外交家感慨道“曾经有段时间他们不会这样做，那段时间法律规则还有约束力。”
6·"But nobody on the American side has ever looked Barzani in the eye and said, 'You can't have Kirkuk'," says a Western diplomat.
但美方无人能直视巴尔扎尼的眼睛然后说“您不能拥有基尔库克”，一名西方外交官如是说。
7·"Mugabe may still be on the bridge, but he's by no means in command," says a Western diplomat, stating a view held by many of his colleagues.
“穆加贝人还在位，但绝不是发号施令者了。”一位西方外交官表达了他自己，也是他不少同仁的观点。
8·"There was never irrefutable proof that this happened but I heard that money had changed hands," says a western diplomat who was serving in Gabon at the time.
当时在加蓬工作的一位西方外交官称，从来没有确凿的证据证明有贿赂行为，但我听说钱有这样的事。
9·One Western diplomat, present at a weekend meeting in Beijing between envoys from America, Japan, China and South Korea, says these four parties are "at a loss over where to go next".
在北京举行的一个周末会议上，一名西方外交官，在美国，日本，中国和韩国的公使都在场的时候，说这四方已经对未来的方向“不知所措了”。
10·Turkey's friends agree that as a seasoned diplomat with determinedly pro-Western views, Mr Gul would make a fine head of state.
居尔是一个富有经验的外交官，并持坚定的亲西方观点，这使得土耳其的盟友们认为他可以成为一个不错的国家首脑。