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普天間協議中断 同盟の危機回避へ決断せよ

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Dec. 10, 2009)
PM must be decisive to avert crisis with U.S.
普天間協議中断 同盟の危機回避へ決断せよ(12月10日付・読売社説)

The Japan-U.S. security alliance is in a crisis situation now that Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has placed priority on the state of the coalition government after flip-flopping in regard to the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture.
 その場しのぎの優柔不断な対応を重ねた末、連立政権の維持を最優先するという鳩山首相の判断が、日米同盟の危機を招いている。

If the current situation is left as is, it might gravely impact Japan-U.S. relations as a whole, which cover not only security but also political and economic spheres.
 このまま放置すれば、安全保障だけでなく、政治、経済などの分野を含め、日米関係全体に重大な影響を与えかねない。

Bilateral relations are in a worrisome state, and Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada has even admitted that the alliance with the United States had been "shaken a little bit." Hatoyama should face up to this fact and hammer out a constructive policy course on the relocation issue.
 岡田外相が「日米同盟が若干揺らいでいる」との懸念を表明するほど、現在の日米関係は憂慮すべき状況にある。鳩山首相は、この事実をきちんと認識し、建設的な対処方針をまとめるべきだ。

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Whole plan in jeopardy

Bilateral ministerial-level talks on the issue have been suspended. This is because the Japanese government conveyed to the U.S. side its intention to postpone the settlement of the issue by the end of this year due to opposition from the Social Democratic Party--one of the junior coalition partners of Hatoyama's Democratic Party of Japan--toward the current relocation plan within the prefecture.
 沖縄県の米海兵隊普天間飛行場の移設問題を協議する日米の閣僚級の作業部会が中断されることになった。日本側が、与党の社民党の反対を理由に、年内の決着を先送りするよう伝えたためだ。

Washington, meanwhile, has notified Tokyo that it would postpone bilateral talks to "deepen" the security alliance, which had been planned as next year marks the 50th anniversary of the revision of the Japan-U.S. Security Treaty.
 来年の日米安保条約改定50周年に向けて、同盟関係を深化させるための日米協議についても、米側が延期を通告してきた。

Hatoyama agreed at a summit meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama last month to "expeditiously" solve the Futenma relocation issue. But the prime minister then unilaterally decided to give up settling the issue before the new year due to domestic circumstances. Moves like this are unacceptable if the two nations seek to work together based on a relationship of trust.
 首脳会談で「迅速に結論を出す」と確認しながら、国内事情から年内決着を一方的に断念する。これでは、信頼関係を基盤とする日米の共同作業は成り立たない。

The government must give serious consideration to how crucial it really is to postpone a settlement of the issue within this year.
 政府は、年内決着を先送りすることの重大な意味を真剣に考えねばなるまい。

If the government fails to solve the issue before the end of the year, the current relocation plan would effectively be shelved. It also would be extremely difficult to find an alternative site and the process as a whole would certainly take a great deal of time.
 年内決着が実現しなければ、現行計画は事実上頓挫する。新たな移設先を探す作業は極めて困難で、膨大な時間を要する。

If this comes about, the Futenma base likely will continue for years to expose local residents to dangers due to its location in a densely populated part of Ginowan, and could even end up staying at its current location indefinitely. It also would increasingly risk the collapse of a plan to transfer 8,000 U.S. marines to Guam and return six U.S. military facilities to the nation.
 その場合、市街地に隣接し、危険な普天間飛行場が現状のまま長期間存続し、固定化する恐れが大きい。海兵隊8000人のグアム移転と米軍6施設の返還も白紙に戻る可能性が高まる。

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Keep coalition in check

Some government officials are considering a plan to ask the United States to place priority on taking measures to mitigate burdens on people in the prefecture, such as the elimination of dangers posed by the Futenma base. But the possibility would be low for the United States to accept any plans that benefit only the Japanese side.
 政府内では新たな対処方針として、普天間飛行場の危険除去など沖縄の負担軽減策を優先して米側に要請する案が浮上している。だが、日本側にだけ都合のいい案に米側が同意する可能性は低い。

It also would be difficult to obtain the understanding of the United States if the government incorporates expenses necessary for the planned relocation in the next fiscal year's budget but has not accepted the current relocation plan.
 現行計画を容認しないまま、移設費用を来年度予算に計上しても米側の理解を得るのは難しい。

After all, it is essential that the Japanese government clarify at an early stage that it supports the existing plan to relocate the Futenma base to a coastal area of the Henoko district of Nago, in the prefecture, where the U.S. Marine Corps' Camp Schwab is located, as agreed by the two governments in 2006.
やはり、日本政府として、現行計画を推進する立場を早期に明確にすることが欠かせない。

We recently have seen several episodes in which the DPJ was swayed by its minor coalition partners--the SDP and the People's New Party--over such issues as the Futenma relocation and the budget compilation. Coupled with Hatoyama's lack of leadership, doubts on the coalition government's ability to implement policy are gathering steam.
 普天間問題や予算編成などをめぐり、民主党が少数与党の社民党や国民新党に振り回される事態が目立つ。首相の指導力の欠如と相まって、連立政権の政策実行能力に大きな疑義を生んでいる。

The SDP threatened to leave the coalition when party leader Mizuho Fukushima said she would have to make "a grave decision" if the government decided to go along with the current relocation plan. We believe it is Hatoyama who must make a grave decision to resolve the Futenma issue as soon as possible, even it is at the cost of the coalition.
 社民党は「重大な決意」に言及して連立離脱をちらつかせ、現行計画に反対した。鳩山首相こそ、連立解消も辞さない「重大な決意」で普天間問題の早期解決に取り組むべき時である。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Dec. 10, 2009)
(2009年12月10日00時55分 読売新聞)
by kiyoshimat | 2009-12-10 06:47 | 英字新聞

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