But despite the country slowly equalizing in the last quarter of a century,

然而，儘管在過去的25年裡，該國經濟逐漸趨於平衡，

considerable differences still remain between the two halves.

但兩個區域之間仍存在相當大的差異。

So, how is Germany still divided?

那麼，德國為何仍存在分裂呢?

Well, after World War Two, Germany was split in two by Allied forces.

二戰後，德國被盟軍一分為二。

The eastern half went to the Soviet Union to be run as a communist state, while the western half went to the European capitalist community.

東半部進入蘇聯，成為共產主義國家，而西半部進入歐洲資本主義國家。

From 1945 to 1989, West Germany flourished while East Germany faltered.

從1945年到1989年，西德繁榮，而東德衰落。

When the Berlin Wall fell, West Germany effectively encapsulated their weaker counterpart,

當柏林圍牆倒塌時，西德實際上將實力較弱的東德封進內部，

leading to a number of lasting differences in both society and economy.

導致了社會和經濟方面許多持久的差異。

Today, unemployment in the East is about three and a half percent higher than in the West.

現今，東部的失業率比西部高出大約 3.5 %。

In fact, following the unification, East Germany's unemployment rate went from zero percent to nearly twenty percent by 1997, and only began to decline in 2005.

事實上，在統一後，東德的失業率從零上升到1997年的近20%，直到2005年才開始下降。

This is because East Germany was forced to compete with an already robust West German economy and currency,

這是因為東德被迫與本已強勁的西德經濟和貨幣競爭，

leading to many failing businesses, and a rapid brain drain to the west.

導致許多企業倒閉，人才迅速流向西德。

To help, West Germany has spent nearly 3 trillion dollars on economic aid,

為了提供幫助，西德已經花費了近3萬億美元用於經濟援助，

which Germans have been paying through an additional income tax. This aid is expected to continue until 2019.

德國人一直通過額外的所得稅來支付這些資金。這項援助預計將持續到2019年。

The transition also caused a large number of East Germans to move West, abandoning a number of cities, turning them into ghost towns.

這種轉變也導致大量東德人向西遷移，拋棄了許多城市，把它們這些城市變成了鬼城。

Although three quarters of former East Germans considered the reunification a success, only half of former West Germans agreed.

雖然四分之三的前東德人認為統一是成功的，但只有一半的前西德人同意。

In fact, poor conditions in the East only intensified after 1989.

事實上，在1989年之後，東部地區的惡劣狀況反而加劇了。

From 1990 to 1994, the birth rate fell by about 50%, and the suicide rate heavily increased.

從1990年到1994年，出生率下降了約50%，自殺率大幅上升。

Right wing groups, including neo-Nazis have also found more popularity in former East Germany,

包括新納粹在內的右翼團體在前東德也更受歡迎，

which some have attributed to a disdain for the region's historically left-leaning communist ideology.

一些人將其歸因於對該地區歷史上左傾的共產主義意識形態的蔑視。

The differences between the two halves are even visible from space,

兩者之間的差異甚至從太空中都可以看到，

with the Eastern half lit by yellow light, and the West by greener light.

東半邊被黃色的光照亮，而西半邊被更綠色的光照亮。

This is the lingering result of the West's foray into environmentally friendly energy,

這是西德進軍環境友好型能源的長期結果，

while the East was extremely reliant on coal.

而東德則是極度依靠煤。

Other superficial differences remain, even two and a half decades later.

即使25年過去了，其他表面上的差異依然存在。

But the strongest reason for their continued separation is that West Germany had a big head start during reunification.

但它們繼續分裂的最強有力的原因是西德在統一期間取得了很大的領先優勢。

Young people in Germany have predominantly chosen to live in the Western half,

德國的年輕人主要選擇生活在西半部，

where the quality of life and employment opportunities are considerably better.

那裡的生活質量和就業機會都要好得多。

This self-perpetuating cycle has kept East Germany from effectively competing with the West.

這種自我持續的循環使東德無法與西方有效競爭。

Unfortunately, there is no reason for this cycle to stop, and it is likely that East and West Germany will continue to be divided for generations to come.

不幸的是，這種循環沒有理由停止，東德和西德很可能會在未來幾代人中繼續分裂。

Germany might still be divided, but the country's economy is now dominating the European Union.

德國可能仍存在分裂，但該國經濟目前正主導著歐盟。

Watch this video to find out more.

觀看視頻了解更多信息。

Thanks for watching TestTube News everyone! Make sure you like and subscribe to the channel, so you don't miss out on all our new videos every day.

感謝大家收看TestTube的新聞!。記得去按讚和訂閱這個頻道，這樣你就不會錯過我們每天的新影片了。