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「佐藤」核密約 東西冷戦下の苦渋の選択だ

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Dec. 24, 2009)
Secret accord inevitable during Cold War era
「佐藤」核密約 東西冷戦下の苦渋の選択だ(12月24日付・読売社説)

A key document that gives credence to the existence of a secret agreement between Japan and the United States over the reentry of nuclear weapons into Okinawa after its reversion to Japan has been discovered.
 沖縄返還後の核再持ち込みをめぐる日米密約の存在を裏付ける貴重な資料が発見された。

The document is an "agreed minute" signed by Prime Minister Eisaku Sato and U.S. President Richard Nixon during a summit meeting held in Washington in November 1969, prior to the 1972 return of Okinawa.
 1972年の沖縄返還に先立つ69年11月、ワシントンで開かれた日米首脳会談で、佐藤栄作首相とニクソン米大統領が極秘に署名した「合意議事録」である。

The document showed that the United States intended to remove all nuclear weapons from Okinawa by the time of its reversion. It also indicated that Washington would require the reentry of nuclear weapons into Okinawa during emergencies, such as a possible incident in the Far East.
 文書は、米国が沖縄返還時にすべての核兵器を撤去するものの、極東有事などの際には再び持ち込む権利を持つことを、日本側が認める内容となっている。

The existence of this kind of secret accord had already been suggested by Kei Wakaizumi, who served as a secret envoy for Sato. However, proof of the existence of the document has now come to light and the finding is of significant historical importance.
 密約の存在は、佐藤首相の密使を務めた若泉敬氏が明らかにしていたが、文書自体の確認は初めてで、その歴史的意義は大きい。

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Difficult decision

During talks over the reversion of Okinawa, Japan requested "nuclear-free, mainland status" for Okinawa. The United States, on the other hand, stressed the necessity of allowing for the reentry of nuclear weapons in the case of an emergency.
 沖縄返還交渉で、日本側は「核抜き本土並み」の返還を求めたのに対し、米側は、極東の安全保障の観点から、有事の核再持ち込みの必要性を主張した。

Agreeing to the secret accord was thus a tough decision taken to ensure the reversion of Okinawa by striking a balance between the Japanese public's negative feelings about nuclear weapons, and security concerns within the Cold War structure brought about by the confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union.
 密約は、米ソ対立による東西冷戦の下、核を忌避する日本の国民感情と安全保障を両立させつつ、沖縄返還を確実にするための苦渋の選択だったと言えよう。

The Foreign Ministry has set up a panel of experts to research and examine the issue of four purported secret agreements with the United States, including the one relating to the reentry of nuclear weapons after the reversion of Okinawa. The recent discovery of the aforementioned document likely will help the panel make significant progress.
 外務省は、有識者委員会を設置し、今回の件を含む四つの密約問題を調査、検証している。合意議事録の発見は、この作業を大きく前進させるだろう。

Sato kept the document at home and we wonder whether its contents were passed on to successive prime ministers and senior ministry officials in an appropriate manner. The panel should uncover the truth through interviews with the people concerned, and via other means.
 議事録は、佐藤首相の自宅に保管されていた。その内容は、歴代首相や外務省幹部にきちんと引き継がれていたのか。有識者委員会は、関係者からの聞き取り調査などを通じて、真相を究明してもらいたい。

The government has consistently denied the existence of such agreements. But, to restore the people's trust in this nation's diplomacy, the government should acknowledge that secret accords were struck and thereby settle the controversy.
 政府は従来、一貫して密約の存在を否定してきた。だが、日本外交に対する国民の信頼を回復するには、密約の存在を認め、問題にけじめをつけるべきだ。

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Deterrence still essential

Though the Cold War has ended, it is hard to say whether the circumstances surrounding Japan's security have improved.
 冷戦は終わったが、現在の日本の安全保障環境は必ずしも改善されたとは言い難い。

North Korea, which has twice conducted nuclear tests, reportedly possesses a huge number of ballistic missiles capable of striking Japan. Meanwhile, China has registered double-digit growth in its defense spending for 21 consecutive years. China reportedly has deployed a number of nuclear missiles targeting Japan.
 北朝鮮は核実験を2度実施し、日本を射程に収める弾道ミサイルを大量に保有する。中国の国防費は21年連続で2ケタの伸びを示した。日本に照準を合わせた核ミサイルも多数配備している。

The U.S. military's nuclear deterrence is still essential for Japan.
 日本にとって米軍の核抑止力は依然、不可欠である。

Presently, however, the Japan-U.S. alliance is being seriously shaken. The administration of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has indecisively handled the relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Okinawa Prefecture, resulting in a strong sense of U.S. distrust toward Japan.
 ところが、鳩山政権は、米軍普天間飛行場の移設問題をめぐる優柔不断な対応で米側の強い不信を招き、日米同盟は今、大きく揺らいでいる。

To maintain the effectiveness of the U.S. deterrence, we believe it is worth giving consideration to allowing port calls or stopovers of vessels and aircraft carrying nuclear weapons. However, such an act would have implications for the third of the nation's three nonnuclear principles of not possessing, not producing and not allowing the entry of nuclear weapons into this nation.
 核抑止力を維持するには、「持たず、作らず、持ち込ませず」の非核三原則の「持ち込ませず」のうち、核搭載艦船や航空機の寄港・立ち寄りを可能にすることも、十分検討に値するだろう。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Dec. 24, 2009)
(2009年12月24日01時31分 読売新聞)
by kiyoshimat | 2009-12-24 04:52 | 英字新聞

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