台北，10月9日——由于北京方面的反对，大型台湾旗帜在国际上基本被禁止展示。然而在今年的国庆庆典上，一面巨大的台湾旗帜被悬挂在美国制造的“支努干”直升机下方，随后飞越台北上空，成为当天最引人注目的场景之一。
TAIPEI, Oct 9 - Largely banned from display internationally due to Beijing's objections, a giant Taiwan flag suspended under a US-made Chinook helicopter and flown over Taipei is one of the most eye-catching moments of its national day.
自2019年起，为在中国施压日益加剧的背景下增强民众团结，台湾军方每年都会在10月10日国庆庆典期间，于奏响国歌之时，安排一架“支努干”CH-47SD直升机拖曳着巨型旗帜飞越总统府上空。
Since 2019, as a way to boost unity amid rising Chinese pressure, Taiwan's army has every year flown a massive flag beneath one of its tandem-rotor Chinook CH-47SD helicopters over the presidential office while the national anthem is sung during the October 10 national day celebration.
赖清德总统将于周六上午发表主题演讲，阐述政策目标并谈及两岸关系。
President Lai Ching-te will give a keynote address mid-morning on Saturday, laying out policy objectives and addressing relations with China.
中国将实行民主制度的台湾视为本国领土，近年来不断加大力度阻止各国与台湾开展往来。例如，中国曾阻止台湾旗帜出现在奥运会等体育赛事中；在这些赛事中，台湾以“中华台北”名义参赛，并使用专门设计的标志。两岸政府彼此均不承认对方。
China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, has ratcheted up efforts to stop countries engaging with Taipei, including preventing Taiwan's flag from appearing at sports events such as the Olympics, where it competes as "Chinese Taipei" and uses a different, custom-designed emblem. Neither government formally recognises the other.
中国国务院台湾事务办公室未对有关台湾国庆庆典的置评请求作出回应。去年赖清德发表演讲后，北京方面称其为“麻烦制造者、危险制造者以及战争制造者”。
China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request for comment on Taiwan's national day celebrations. Following Lai's speech last year, Beijing called him "a troublemaker, creator of danger and a war-maker".
本周参与演练的一名40岁的直升机飞行员林昌诚对路透社表示，这面旗帜是“国家主权的具体象征”。
One of the helicopter pilots taking part in rehearsals this week, 40-year-old Lin Chang-cheng, told Reuters that the flag is a "concrete symbol of national sovereignty".
“鉴于我们在国际社会上确实遭受了不少打压，因此当看到国旗高高飘扬时，那种感动之情难以言表，”他在台北市中心的松山机场说道。
"This is especially true given that we have actually suffered a lot of suppression in the international community, so when we see the national flag being displayed, it's an extremely moving moment," he said at Taipei's downtown Songshan airport.
台湾的国庆日是为了纪念1911年爆发的革命。那场革命推翻了中国最后一个封建王朝，促成了中华民国的建立。
Taiwan's national day is held on the anniversary of a 1911 uprising that led to the overthrow of China's last imperial dynasty and the establishment of the Republic of China.
1949年，中华民国政府在与毛泽东领导的共产党进行的内战中失利，随后撤退至台湾。中国共产党随后宣布成立中华人民共和国。如今，“中华民国”仍是台湾的正式国名。
The Republic of China government fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a civil war with Mao Zedong's communists, who proclaimed the People's Republic of China. Republic of China remains Taiwan's formal name.
这面尺寸为12米乘18米（40英尺乘60英尺）的中华民国国旗，通过一根带有配重的长缆绳悬挂在直升机下方。制作该国旗的材料与降落伞所用材料相同，既坚韧又轻便。
Suspended from a long, weighted cable beneath the helicopter, the 12-metre-by-18-metre (40-feet-by-60-feet) Republic of China flag is made out of the same tough, light-weight material used for parachutes.
尽管这面国旗在台湾岛内也存在争议——尤其是那些主张与中国完全区分开来的群体对此颇有微词——但对于许多在台北市各山丘上观看庆典的人来说，看到国旗迎风飘扬仍是一件令人激动的事。
While the flag is a contested symbol even within Taiwan, especially for those who champion an entirely separate identity from China, catching sight of it flying over Taipei is exciting for those watching from the city's hills.
“当我看到台湾的旗帜时，我觉得它象征着自由、民主以及言论自由，”44岁的萧绍春在台北郊外观看彩排时说道。
"When I see the Taiwan flag, I feel that it represents freedom, democracy and freedom of speech," said Hsiao Shao-chun, 44, watching rehearsals on Taipei's outskirts.
冷战时期，台湾的国庆庆典多以军事内容为主，领导人还会发表“光复大陆”的演讲。如今，这类庆典则更侧重于展示台湾的软实力及其国际影响力，比如在世界最高建筑之一——台北101大楼前举行的烟花表演。
During the Cold War, national day celebrations in Taiwan were heavily military focused, with speeches about "retaking the mainland". These days, the event is more about showcasing Taiwan's soft power and global visibility, including a fireworks display at Taipei 101, one of the world's tallest buildings.