东盟对美国态度转冷

Southeast Asian leaders have agreed not to “internationalise the maritime disputes in the resource-rich South China Sea, in a move that will assuage Beijing but complicate US and Japanese strategy in the region.

东南亚各国领导人同意不在资源丰富的南中国海将海上纠纷“国际化。此举将安抚中国，但给美国和日本在该地区的战略带来了麻烦。

At a twice yearly meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations said it would only discuss the deepening territorial rows with China – excluding other nations such as the US and Japan which claim a national interest in debating regional security issues.

在柬埔寨首都金边举行的一年两次的会议上，由10个成员国组成的东南亚国家联盟(ASEAN)表示，它将只同中国商讨不断加深的领土争端。此言意味着要把美国和日本等其他国家排除在外。美日等国主张，辩论亚太地区的安全问题涉及其国家利益。

“The Asean leaders decided that they would not internationalise the South China Sea from now on, that they will focus this entirely within the existing Asean-China mechanisms, said Kao Kim Hourn, a senior Cambodian official.

“东盟领导人决定，从现在起他们将不把南海问题国际化，而是完全在现有的东盟-中国机制下专注于这个问题，柬埔寨高级官员高金洪(Kao Kim Hourn)表示。

His comments came two days before the East Asia Summit, an international meeting that will be attended by 18 world leaders, including Barack Obama, Wen Jiabao, China’s Premier, and the prime ministers of India and Japan, Manmohan Singh and Yoshihiko Noda.

高金洪是在东亚峰会(East Asia Summit)召开两天前发表上述言论的。有18位世界领导人将出席这一峰会，其中包括巴拉克·奥巴马(Barack Obama)、中国总理温家宝、印度总理曼莫汉·辛格(Manmohan Singh)以及日本首相野田佳彦(Yoshihiko Noda)。

As part of its strategic pivot back to Asia, the US joined the East Asia Summit last year and has stated that it should be the major forum for the discussion of regional security issues such as the South China Sea rows. The US administration has angered Beijing by raising concerns about China’s assertive behaviour in the South and East China seas.

作为将重心转向亚洲战略的一部分，美国在去年加入东亚峰会，而且它还声明，这个峰会应当成为讨论地区安全问题（如南海争端）的主要论坛。奥巴马政府对中国在南海和东海的强硬行为表示关切，此举激怒了北京方面。

Diplomats said that, although some southeast Asian nations remained concerned about China’s renewed assertiveness, they were eager not to upset Beijing at a sensitive time when the Communist party’s leadership transition had just taken place.

外交官们表示，虽然某些东南亚国家仍对中国重新显露出的强硬感到担忧，但它们急于在中共领导层刚刚完成换届的敏感时刻避免得罪北京方面。

“China is trying its best to downplay the South China Sea issue by convincing Asean countries not make it a big agenda issue at the East Asia Summit, said one senior Asean diplomat. “They will not push the issue too much knowing that this is not the time for a big fight with China.

“中国正竭尽所能淡化南海问题的影响，试图说服东盟国家不在东亚峰会上将此列为重大议题。东盟一名高级外交官表示，“它们不会在这个问题上大做文章，因为它们明白现在不是与中国闹翻的时候。

Beijing has long argued that its disputes with Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam in the South China Sea, and with Japan in the East China Sea, should only be discussed on a bilateral basis.

北京方面一贯主张，中国与文莱、马来西亚、菲律宾、台湾和越南在南海的纠纷，以及与日本在东海的纠纷，只应当在双边基础上进行探讨。

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, which contains vast oil and gas reserves, sizeable fish stocks and key global trade routes.

中国宣称其对几乎整个南海拥有主权。南海蕴藏着巨大的石油和天然气储量，还拥有庞大的渔业资源和关键的全球贸易航道。

As it has rapidly expanded its naval capabilities, it has become increasingly assertive about its territorial claims, leading to maritime clashes with Vietnam and the Philippines and pushing both countries to deepen their strategic ties with the US.

近年来快速扩充海军实力的中国，在强调其领土主张方面日趋强硬，导致其与越南和菲律宾发生海上冲突，促使这两个国家深化与美国的战略关系。

The last high-level Asean summit in July ended in disarray when Cambodia caved in to pressure from China, a close ally and key donor, by refusing to allow Vietnam and the Philippines to raise concerns about their recent clashes with China in the closing communiqué.

7月份举行的上一次东盟峰会不了了之地结束。当时，柬埔寨屈服于中国（柬的密切盟友和关键援助国）的压力，拒绝让越南和菲律宾在会议公报中提到它们对近期与中国发生冲突的担忧。

Mr Kao Kim Hourn said that southeast Asian leaders “do not want to complicate matters by raising the disputes in international forums.

高金洪表示，东南亚国家领导人“不希望（因在国际论坛提起这些纠纷而）导致事态复杂化。

His comments were backed by Beijing. Qin Gang, a spokesman for China’s foreign ministry, said that in meetings in Phnom Penh with Mr Wen, the leaders of Indonesia and Malaysia had agreed that the South China Sea “should be properly addressed between Asean and China and should not be a “key issue at the East Asia Summit.

他的言论得到北京方面的支持。中国外交部发言人秦刚表示，印尼和马来西亚领导人在金边同温家宝会谈时同意，南海问题应当在东盟和中国之间妥善解决，不应该成为东亚峰会上的一个关键议题。

In a statement likely to frustrate Washington, Mr Qin said that the focus of the meeting should be “how to deal with the impact of the international financial crisis in the East Asian region.

秦刚表示，本次会议的焦点应当是如何在东亚地区应对国际金融危机的影响。此言很可能惹恼美国方面。