阿米蒂奇:美国对中日岛争非持中立态度

The U.S. isn’t saying who it thinks has legal sovereignty over islands disputed by Japan and China in the East China Sea, but don’t mistake that stand for neutrality, says former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.

美国并没说它认为中日两国谁对东中国海(East China Sea，中国称东海)的争议岛屿拥有合法主权，但美国前副国务卿阿米蒂奇(Richard Armitage)说，不要误以为这代表美国持中立态度。

Mr. Armitage traveled with a delegation of ex-U.S. officials to both countries in late October at the behest of the State Department to convey U.S. concerns about the way the dispute had flared up.

今年10月下旬，阿米蒂奇曾应美国国务院的要求，随同一个由美国前政府官员组成的代表团赴中日进行访问，传达美国对中日领土争端出现升级的担忧。

“We’re not neutral when our ally is a victim of coercion or aggression or intimidation, said Mr. Armitage in an interview, referring to Japan.

阿米蒂奇在接受采访时说，当我们的盟友(即日本)受到胁迫、侵犯或恐吓时，美国是不会中立的。

Ties between Tokyo and Beijing have been strained since Japan purchased some of the disputed islands in the East China Sea, known as the Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese, back in September.

自今年9月日本政府购买了部分位于东中国海的争议岛屿(日本称尖阁列岛，中国称钓鱼岛)以来，东京和北京的关系就紧张起来。

Mr. Armitage said his group had to overcome some misunderstandings in Beijing over the fact the U.S. has not pronounced its position on the question of sovereignty.

阿米蒂奇说，美国还未明确宣布自己在这个主权问题上的立场，而他这个代表团必须消除北京在这方面的一些误解。

“They would say, ‘We appreciate your neutrality,’ and we [would say], ‘We’re not neutral. We just haven’t declared one way or the other.’

阿米蒂奇说，北京方面会说，我们感谢美国保持中立，而美国会说，我们并不中立，我们只是还没有以这样或那样的方式宣布而已。

The language of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty means “the United States has responsibilities for the defense of the Senkakus, Mr. Armitage said. “That would hardly make us neutral.

阿米蒂奇说，《美日安保条约》(U.S.-Japan Security Treaty)的条款意味着美国对保护尖阁列岛负有责任，这就让我们很难保持中立。

He said the group, which also included Harvard Prof. Joseph Nye, former U.S. diplomat James Steinberg and former National Security Adviser Stephen Hadley, advised both sides to keep cool heads and develop lines of communication between the two nations to prevent misunderstandings in a crisis. The advice seems to have had some effect, he said.

阿米蒂奇说，该代表团建议中日双方保持冷静，开发沟通渠道，防止在危机出现时有什么误解。哈佛大学教授约瑟夫·奈(Joseph Nye)、美国前外交官斯坦伯格(James Steinberg)和美国前国家安全顾问哈德利(Stephen Hadley)等也是代表团成员。阿米蒂奇说，他们的建议似乎有了一些成效。

“It is my opinion that from the time of our trip until now, there has been a lowering of the temperature and certainly a lowering of the rhetoric, and that’s not a bad thing, he said.

阿米蒂奇说，我个人认为，从我们访问中日两国到现在，两国的紧张态势一直在降温，双方言辞的激烈程度当然也有所缓和，这不是坏事。

Still, he predicted that a more permanent solution will have to wait until next year, after Japan’s general election on Dec. 16 and the completion of China’s leadership transition in March. “From now to then, I think the best we can do is to keep a lid on it and keep people calm and rational, he said.

尽管如此，阿米蒂奇仍预计，拿出更为长久的解决之道还要等到明年，因为日本将于今年12月16日举行大选，而中国也将于明年3月完成领导层换届。他说，从现在到那时，我觉得我们所能做的就是克制，让双方保持冷静和理智。

Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is seen as the favorite to return to the top job after Japan’s election. Mr. Abe may not be as much of a right-wing hawk in office as he is sometimes portrayed, said Mr. Armitage, who has been involved in East Asian affairs for more than 40 years, starting with U.S. Navy service in Vietnam.

日本前首相安倍晋三(Shinzo Abe)目前被认为在日本此次大选后很可能重返首相一职。阿米蒂奇说，安倍晋三上任后，可能并不像时常被描述的那样，是个右翼鹰派。阿米蒂奇参与东亚事务已有40余年，最初曾在驻越南的美国海军服役。

“Although he came in to the previous prime minister job with a reputation for great conservatism, he actually governed quite pragmatically, and I look forward to that, said Mr. Armitage, observing that Mr. Abe chose not to visit Yasukuni Shrine as prime minister, although he had done so earlier.

阿米蒂奇说，虽然安倍晋三任日本首相时落下了过于保守主义的名声，但实际上他在治理方面相当务实，我很期待看到这一点。阿米蒂奇还观察到，安倍晋三任首相期间，并没选择去参拜靖国神社(Yasukuni Shrine)，尽管他以前曾去过。

China has objected whenever top Japanese politicians visit the shrine, which serves as a memorial to Japanese war dead including some war criminals.

每当日本高级政治人物参拜靖国神社，中国就会表示反对。靖国神社是日本纪念战死者的地方，其中包括部分战犯。

Mr. Abe visited the shrine in October after returning to the helm of the Liberal Democratic Party the previous month.

今年9月，安倍晋三重新成为日本自由民主党(Liberal Democratic Party)的领袖。之后，他于10月份参拜了靖国神社。