美中在东盟峰会上就南海问题交锋
China and the US clashed over the South China Sea at an annual meeting of Asia-Pacific leaders at the weekend, blaming each other for “militarising” the region as tensions over longstanding maritime disputes continue to simmer.
中国和美国周末在一个亚太国家领导人的年度会议上就南中国海问题发生言语交锋，彼此指责对方在地区搞“军事化”。围绕长期海上争端的紧张局势持续发酵。
Speaking before a meeting with leaders of the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Kuala Lumpur, Barack Obama, the US president, called on rival claimants to “halt reclamation, new construction and militarisation of disputed areas” in the South China Sea for the sake of regional stability.
美国总统巴拉克·奥巴马(Barack Obama)在东南亚国家联盟(ASEAN) 10国领导人在吉隆坡举行的会议上发表讲话，要求声索主权的各方为了地区稳定，在南中国海“停止在争议地区填海造岛、新建工程以及军事化”。
Beijing hit back, insisting that its actions were “beyond reproach,” that it was only building military installations on South China Sea islands to protect its civilian facilities and that a recent US naval mission was a “political provocation” designed to “test China’s response”.
北京方面作出回击，坚称其行为“无可厚非”，中国在南海岛屿上建造军事设施只是为了防卫其民用设施，并称美国海军最近的行动是一种“政治挑衅”，目的是“检验中国会做什么样的反应”。
China’s intense programme of reclamation on reefs in the contested waters and the construction of airfields and other military facilities has sparked concern in south-east Asian capitals as well as Washington and Tokyo.
中国在有争议海域进行高强度填海造岛，还建造机场等军事设施，已在东南亚各国首都以及华盛顿和东京引起关注。
The US responded last month by sailing a warship within 12 nautical miles of a man-made island in the South China Sea controlled by Beijing, infuriating China with what Washington called a “freedom of navigation operation”.
美国在上月作出回应，出动一艘军舰驶入北京方面在南中国海控制的一座人工岛的12海里范围内，美方所称的这个“航行自由行动”激怒了中国。
Beijing lays claim to almost the entire resource-rich South China Sea, while Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also maintain full or partial claims.
北京方面宣称其在资源丰富的南中国海拥有几乎全部主权，而文莱、马来西亚、菲律宾、台湾和越南也宣称拥有全部或部分主权。
China’s ever more assertive stance has upset rival claimants, while the US and Japan, which has its own territorial dispute with Beijing in the East China Sea, have become increasingly concerned about the threat to regional stability and freedom of navigation.
中国越来越强硬的姿态令其他主权声索方不满，同时美国以及与北京方面在东中国海存在领土争端的日本，则对地区稳定和航行自由所面临的威胁日益关切。
Speaking after a meeting between Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, Mr Obama and 16 other regional leaders, Liu Zhenmin, China’s vice-foreign minister, attacked the “false argument” that it was militarising the South China Sea.
在中国总理李克强、奥巴马以及其他16个地区领导人开会后，中国副外长刘振民发表讲话，抨击了有关中国在南海搞军事化的“虚假论点”。
He said the reclamation, which was completed in June, and construction efforts were intended to reduce the “hardship” of those living on the islands and to develop facilities to help distressed fishermen and commercial ships. Mr Liu added that “as those islands and reefs are far from China’s mainland, it is necessary to build and maintain military facilities” but he said that “one should never link such military facilities with efforts to militarise” the South China Sea.
他表示，填海工程（已在6月完工）以及建设努力的目的是要减少那些生活在岛上的人员的“艰苦”，并发展帮助遇险渔民和商船的设施。刘振民补充说：“在远离祖国大陆的这些岛礁上，保持建设必要的军事防卫措施，这是国家国防安全的需要，也是保护岛礁的需要，”但他表示，“千万不要把我们在岛礁上要建的军事设施与岛礁军事化，与南海军事化挂起钩来。”
Ashley Townshend, a security researcher at the University of Sydney, said the real concern was “a much more significant militarisation”, including any deployment of military aircraft, large artillery or short-range missile batteries on a permanent basis. “China would do well to clarify what it intends to deploy, in defence of what threats it believes exist, in order to be transparent,” he said.
悉尼大学(University of Sydney)安全问题研究员阿什利·汤曾德(Ashley Townshend)表示，真正令人担忧的是“规模大得多的军事化”，包括永久性部署军用飞机、大型火炮或短程导弹阵地。“为了透明起见，中国最好澄清它打算部署什么，抵御什么它相信存在的威胁，”他表示。
Gary Li of Beijing-based consultancy Apco Worldwide said that while China had always stressed that the new facilities were for civilian use, “everyone knows and China has never denied that the garrisons on these islands are military in nature”.
北京安可顾问公司(APCO Worldwide)的Gary Li表示，尽管中国一直强调新建设施是民用的，但“大家都明白，中国也从未否认，这些岛上的工事是军用性质的”。
Shinzo Abe, Japan’s prime minister, also raised concerns at the summit about China’s behaviour, criticising “unilateral acts” that had heightened tensions in the South China Sea.
日本首相安倍晋三(Shinzo Abe)也在峰会上对中国的行为表示担忧，他批评某些“单方面行为”加剧了南海紧张局势。
Japanese officials said Tokyo supported the US navy’s freedom of navigation operation but there was confusion over whether Japan would join its ally by sending in its self-defence forces, as its military is known. One Japanese official briefed the media that Mr Abe told Mr Obama last week that he would consider such a move “with regard to the effect on Japan’s national security”.
日本官员表示东京方面支持美国海军的航行自由行动，但对于日本会不会出动自卫队加入盟友的行动，有一些不一致的表示。一位日本官员在对媒体吹风时表示，安倍上周告诉奥巴马，他在考虑这样的行动时，会顾及其“对日本的国家安全的影响”。
But other Japanese diplomats downplayed this, saying there were “no plans” to do so. Analysts believe that Japan is unlikely to take such a course of action at present although US military officials would be glad if they did.
但其他日本外交官淡化了这一点，称日方“没有计划”这样做。分析人士相信，日本目前不太可能采取此类行动，尽管如果他们这么做的话，美军官员将很高兴。
