Spain’s prime minister has opened the way for Madrid to use a constitutional “nuclear option” to suspend Catalonia’s autonomy, demanding that the regional government makes clear whether it considers itself independent.

西班牙首相开启了马德里方面动用宪法“核选项”暂停加泰罗尼亚自治的道路，要求该自治区政府澄清它是否自认为已经独立。

Mariano Rajoy decided to take the first step towards triggering Article 155 of the Spanish constitution, which would give Madrid previously unused powers to take control of Catalonia’s regional government, after an emergency cabinet meeting on Wednesday.

在周三举行紧急内阁会议后，马里亚诺•拉霍伊(Mariano Rajoy，上图)决定向着触发西班牙宪法第155条迈出第一步，这将使得马德里具备以前未曾用过的权力，可以接管加泰罗尼亚的地方政府。

Stepping up pressure on the Catalan government, he has given Carles Puigdemont, the Catalan president, five days to clarify the suspended declaration of independence he made on Tuesday.

他向加泰罗尼亚自治区政府加大压力，给自治区主席卡莱斯•普伊格德蒙特(Carles Puigdemont) 5天时间澄清他在周二宣告的暂缓独立是什么意思。

Mr Rajoy said his formal request for clarity was “necessary when activating Article 155” and would dictate the next steps in the crisis to “offer certainty to the citizens”.

拉霍伊表示，他提出的正式澄清要求是“触发第155条的必要条件”，并将决定这场?；暮笮街瑁员?ldquo;向公民提供确定性”。

Using Article 155 to suspend Catalan autonomy would deepen the constitutional crisis in Spain since Catalonia held a contested referendum on independence on October 1. Spain’s government says Catalonia’s independence drive is unconstitutional.

动用第155条来暂停加泰罗尼亚自治，将加深西班牙的宪政危机，这场?；加诩犹┞弈嵫窃?0月1日举行有争议的独立公投。西班牙政府表示，加泰罗尼亚的独立努力是违宪的。

Mr Puigdemont on Tuesday night stepped back from making a full declaration of immediate independence, calling for more dialogue with Spain to resolve the matter peacefully. But his speech to the Catalan parliament was ambiguous.

普伊格德蒙特周二晚没有宣告立即完全独立，而是呼吁同西班牙进行更多对话，以和平解决这个问题。但他对加泰罗尼亚议会发表的演讲是模棱两可的。

At one point he appeared to declare independence, saying he now assumed the “mandate for Catalonia to become an independent state in the form of a republic”. But this was followed by a proposed suspension of independence for a “few weeks”.

在某个时刻，他似乎宣告了独立，称他现在有了“让加泰罗尼亚以共和国的形式成为一个独立国家的民意授权”。但之后他提议暂缓独立“几个星期”。

According to Spanish media, Madrid has given Catalonia until Monday to confirm its independence. The regional government would then be given three more days to rectify its decision before Article 155 would be triggered next Thursday.

据西班牙媒体报道，马德里要求加泰罗尼亚最迟在下周一确认其到底独立了没有。之后，自治区政府将有三天时间修正其决定，最后第155条将在下周四被触发。

Meanwhile, there were signs that the government was trying to take some steps to de-escalate the situation.

与此同时，有迹象显示，西班牙政府正采取一些措施使局势降温。

Pedro Sanchez, the head of the opposition socialists, said on Wednesday that his party and the ruling centre-right PP party had agreed to talks to renegotiate laws governing regional autonomy.

反对党工人社会党领导人佩德罗•桑切斯(Pedro Sanchez)周三表示，他的党和执政的中右翼政党人民党(Partido Popular)已同意重新谈判地区自治法律。

He said there would be six months of talks on reforming the constitution, followed by a debate in parliament, adding that his party wanted a constitutional reform to “allow for Catalonia to remain a part of Spain”.

他说，围绕宪法改革的谈判将持续六个月，然后是议会辩论。他补充说，他的政党希望通过宪法改革“让加泰罗尼亚仍然是西班牙的一部分”。

Mr Sanchez also said his party was backing Mr Rajoy’s calls for clarification over what Mr Puigdemont said on Tuesday night.

桑切斯还表示，他的党支持拉霍伊要求普伊格德蒙特澄清周二晚讲话的做法。

Addressing parliament on Wednesday evening, Mr Rajoy rejected offers of international mediation in the Catalonia crisis, and called for respect of Spanish law.

拉霍伊周三晚对议会发表讲话，拒绝了由国际社会调停加泰罗尼亚?；奶嵋?，并呼吁尊重西班牙法律。