日本首相安倍晉三(Shinzo Abe)昨日對珍珠港進行的具有高度象征意義的訪問被譽為日美緊密關(guān)系的體現(xiàn)。半年前巴拉克•奧巴馬(Barack Obama)對廣島作了歷史性訪問。
Yet as the Japanese and US leaders prepared to honour the 2,403 Americans who lost their lives in the 1941 surprise attack that propelled the US into the second world war, uncertainties cloud the future of the partnership.
然而,在日本和美國領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人準備紀念在1941年珍珠港突襲中喪生的2403名美國人(那次襲擊使美國卷入第二次世界大戰(zhàn))之際,一些不確定性給這一伙伴關(guān)系帶來陰云。
President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign comments raised doubts about his commitment to US postwar alliances, as he complained about the cost of US military support and vowed to tear up the Trans-Pacific Partnership that Mr Abe and Mr Obama advocated.
美國當(dāng)選總統(tǒng)唐納德•特朗普(Donald Trump)在競選過程中發(fā)表的言論,令人懷疑他對美國戰(zhàn)后聯(lián)盟的誠意。他抱怨美國軍事支持的成本,并誓言撕毀安倍和奧巴馬倡導(dǎo)的《跨太平洋伙伴關(guān)系協(xié)定》(TPP)。
Mr Abe visited Mr Trump in November seeking clarity about his intentions, emerging from the meeting to declare him a “trustworthy leader”.
安倍在11月拜訪了特朗普,尋求弄明后者的意圖,他在會晤結(jié)束后宣布特朗普是一個“值得信賴的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人”。
“This is a time when the alliance has never been stronger” between the two countries, said Jennifer Lind, professor in the Department of Government at Dartmouth College. “The big question is Trump’s Asia policy and Trump’s China policy. I don’t think we know. He campaigned as if he were someone who did not value the US-led order in Asia.”
“當(dāng)今是美日同盟空前強大的時代,”達特茅斯學(xué)院(Dartmouth College)政府系教授詹妮弗•林德(Jennifer Lind)表示。“最大問題是特朗普的亞洲政策和特朗普的中國政策。我不認為我們知道。從他的競選言論看,他似乎并不看重美國在亞洲主導(dǎo)的秩序。”
Yesterday, Mr Abe was due to be the first Japanese leader to visit the USS Arizona memorial, completed in 1961. Some 1,177 of the 1,400 sailors on board the battleship died in Japan’s attack. It was initially thought Mr Abe would be the first Japanese prime minister to visit Pearl Harbor but records emerged of a private visit by former prime minister Shigeru Yoshida in 1951.
根據(jù)日程安排,昨日安倍晉三將成為首位訪問美國海軍亞利桑那號戰(zhàn)列艦紀念館(USS Arizona Memorial)的日本領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人;這個紀念館于1961年建成。在珍珠港襲擊中,這艘戰(zhàn)艦上的1400名水兵中有1177人喪生。外界起初認為,安倍將是首位訪問珍珠港的日本首相,但歷史記錄顯示,前首相吉田茂(Shigeru Yoshida)曾在1951年以私人身份訪問了珍珠港。
Significantly, Mr Abe was to be the first leader to visit since the revival of nationalism made all expressions of Japanese remorse and culpability controversial at home. It is the latest effort by Mr Abe to settle the ghosts of Japan’s second world war history, strengthen the US-Japan alliance and “look to the future”.
值得注意的是,安倍將成為自民族主義在日本卷土重來、使該國國內(nèi)對于悔恨和罪責(zé)的任何表達都變得有爭議以來首位訪問珍珠港的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人。這是安倍驅(qū)散日本二戰(zhàn)歷史魅影、加強美日同盟和“展望未來”的最新努力。
He referred to Pearl Harbor in a well-received speech to the US Congress last year and navigated a statement on the war’s 70th anniversary without causing new offence to Japan’s neighbours. In May he accompanied Mr Obama to the site of the first atomic bombing in Hiroshima, where the US president said nuclear-armed nations should pursue a world without the weapons.
他去年在向美國國會發(fā)表的反響不錯的演講中提到了珍珠港,并在沒有對鄰國造成新的冒犯的情況下發(fā)表了紀念二戰(zhàn)結(jié)束70周年的聲明。今年5月,他陪同奧巴馬訪問廣島第一次原子彈轟炸的遺址,其間美國總統(tǒng)表示,核武國家應(yīng)該為實現(xiàn)一個沒有核武器的世界而努力。
Mr Abe will probably be the last foreign leader to hold a bilateral meeting with Mr Obama before he leaves office. However, his visit is as much about trying to make a point to the incoming Trump administration as it is about cementing ties with Mr Obama.
安倍很可能將是奧巴馬卸任前最后一位與他舉行雙邊會晤的外國領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人。然而,他的訪問既是為了夯實與奧巴馬的關(guān)系,也是為了向即將上臺的特朗普政府表明觀點。
Mr Trump has a long record of scepticism about Japan that goes back to the trade disputes of the 1980s and has consistently called on Tokyo to spend more on its own defence to reduce the burden on the US. During the election campaign, he suggested he would be willing to downgrade the US-Japan alliance. 特朗普長期對日本持懷疑態(tài)度,他在這方面的記錄可以追溯到上世紀80年代美日貿(mào)易爭端期間。他還一再呼吁東京方面加大國防支出,以減輕美國的負擔(dān)。在競選期間,他曾暗示他愿意降級美日同盟。
But with Mr Trump also pledging to take a harder line with China on economic and security issues, he could find Mr Abe’s Japan becomes a crucial ally.
但是,鑒于特朗普也承諾在經(jīng)濟和安全問題上對中國采取更加強硬的立場,他可能發(fā)現(xiàn)安倍領(lǐng)導(dǎo)的日本會是一個至關(guān)重要的盟友。
Not only is Japan central to the American military presence in the region, but it is pushing for closer ties with the US at a time when some of Washington’s other alliances in the region are in trouble — from the disputes with Rodrigo Duterte, the president of the Philippines, to the political turmoil in South Korea. At the same time China is pursuing a more aggressive approach in the East and South China Seas.
日本不僅在美國在亞洲的軍事存在中處于核心地位,而且在美國的其他一些亞洲盟友出現(xiàn)問題之際,該國正在推動與美國建立更緊密關(guān)系。這些問題包括菲律賓總統(tǒng)羅德里戈•杜特爾特(Rodrigo Duterte)對美國找茬,以及韓國陷入政治動蕩。與此同時,中國正在東中國海和南中國海擺出更加咄咄逼人的姿態(tài)。
Sheila Smith, senior fellow for Japan studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said that Mr Trump had toned down some of his rhetoric on US-Japan relations since the campaign, and that Mr Trump’s key foreign policy appointees were likely to value strong alliances.
美國外交關(guān)系協(xié)會(Council on Foreign Relations)從事日本研究的高級研究員希拉•史密斯(Sheila Smith)說,相比競選言論,特朗普已經(jīng)弱化了他對美日關(guān)系的評論調(diào)門,而特朗普任命的關(guān)鍵外交政策官員很可能會重視強大的聯(lián)盟。
Mr Abe will not apologise for the Pearl Harbor attack while in Hawaii, in keeping with his past statements on the war. The prime minister has evolved a formula whereby he often talks of his grief and sadness at the events of the war without offering specific apologies.
安倍在夏威夷期間不會為珍珠港襲擊事件道歉,這與他過去關(guān)于戰(zhàn)爭的陳述一致。這位日本首相已經(jīng)發(fā)展出一個套路:他經(jīng)常談到他對戰(zhàn)時事件的悲傷和痛心,但不作具體道歉。