美国援助菲律宾暗含的外交目的

A relief mission to bring aid to millions of people affected by Typhoon Haiyan is taking on political overtones as the U.S. mounts a large military-backed operation near waters China claims as part of its sphere of influence.

向遭受台风“海燕”重创的数百万灾民运送救援物资的任务开始带上政治色彩。目前，在中国宣称属于其势力范围的海域附近，美国正在发起一项由军方支持的大规模救灾行动。

On Friday, helicopters flew sortie missions to drop food and water to hard-hit and inaccessible parts of the disaster zone from the USS George Washington aircraft carrier, anchoRed just off the coast of the Philippines. The U.S. has donated $20 million in disaster relief, among the largest commitments of any nation, according to Philippines government data. U.S. Marines are involved in aid flights between Philippine cities.

上周五，停靠在菲律宾附近的“乔治?华盛顿”号航母上的舰载直升机多次出任务，向重灾区和交通中断的地区投送食品和水。据菲律宾政府的数据显示，美国已向菲律宾提供价值2,000万美元的救灾物资，在所有援助国中属最高之列。美国海军陆战队正在参与菲律宾多个城市之间的救援飞行任务。

While the Pentagon is under strain from shrinking budgets, the missions allow the U.S. to project soft power and potentially upstage China, which had been seen as slow to offer humanitarian aid.

尽管五角大楼面临着预算不断收缩的压力，但救灾行动使美国能够彰显其软实力，可能抢过中国的风头。外界曾一直认为此次中国在提供人道主义援助方面行动迟缓。

'The large-scale mission is a reflection of Washington's desire to show that it is committed to the Asia pivot and willing to stand up and help its friends,' said Masafumi Kaneko, a researcher at the Tokyo-based PHP Institute think tank, referring to Washington's policy of expanding its diplomatic and military presence in Asia.

东京智库PHP研究所(PHP Institute)的研究人员Masafumi Kaneko说，大规模的行动反映出华盛顿希望显示出其致力于以亚洲为重心，愿意站出来帮助朋友。他指的是华盛顿扩大在亚洲外交和军事参与的政策。

The U.S. aid comes as Japan, another important ally of the Philippines, gears up to play a central role in relief efforts. On Friday, Japan increased its offer of aid to $52 million. The country is dispatching 1,000 troops to the Philippines in what Japanese officials have described as the largest-ever deployment by the nation's Self-Defense Forces for disaster aid.

美国向菲律宾提供援助的同时，菲律宾的另外一个重要盟友日本正准备在救援工作中发挥核心作用。上周五，日本将援助规模扩大到5,200万美元。日本将向菲律宾派出1,000人的部队，日本官员说这是日本自卫队有史以来在救灾行动中派兵最多的一次。

Both the U.S. and Japan have been trying to tighten ties with Manila over the past year in a push widely seen as an effort to deter China from aggressively pressing its territorial claims in the region. Those claims include resource-rich waters around the Philippines at the heart of escalating territorial disputes between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea.

过去一年，美国和日本都一直在努力增强与马尼拉的关系，外界普遍认为此举是为防止中国在该地区积极宣示主权。中国称菲律宾附近资源丰富的海域属于其领土。这一地区位于南中国海(South China Sea，中国称南海)，是马尼拉与北京之间不断升级的领土争端的焦点。

Against that backdrop, China has appeared reluctant to offer help, analysts said. The government initially announced $100,000 in relief through the Red Cross Society of China. Some Chinese state-backed media said China, as a rising regional power, needed to do more. On Thursday, the country increased its pledge to $1.6 million.

分析人士说，有鉴于此，中国似乎不愿提供帮助。中国政府最初宣布将通过中国红十字会向菲律宾提供10万美元援助。一些中国国有媒体说，作为该地区正在崛起的大国，中国需要提供更多的援助。上周四，中国将援助额增加至160万美元。

'In a sense, the damage had already been done,' said Ian Storey, a senior fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore. It gives the impression that China is 'not living up to its responsibilities,' he said.

新加坡东南亚研究所(Institute of Southeast Asian Studies)高级研究人员斯托里(Ian Storey)说，从某种意义上讲，损害已经发生了。他说，它给人留下这样的印象：中国没有尽到自己的责任。

China's Foreign Ministry has said that its pledges of aid aren't necessarily one-time deals, and that it would continue to monitor humanitarian needs.

中国外交部说，中国的援助承诺并不一定是一次性的，中国将继续关注菲律宾的人道主义需求。

The U.S. has long played a leading role in disaster relief in Asia, providing significant military and logistical support in the aftermath of the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 and Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar in 2008, in part a reflection of its more advanced military capabilities in the region. Such efforts were widely praised by residents at the time, especially where local governments didn't have the capacity to perform complex supply airlifts or search for bodies in remote areas.

长期以来，美国一直在亚洲的救灾工作中发挥着领头作用，在2004年印度洋海啸和2008年缅甸遭热带气旋“纳吉斯”(Nargis)重创后提供了重要的军事和物流支持，从一定程度上反映出美国在该地区更先进的军事能力。当时，这类救灾工作受到了灾民的普遍赞扬，特别是在当地政府无力开展复杂的物资空运或在偏远地区进行搜救的时候。

In the last two decades, the Pentagon has responded to more than 40 disasters just in the Pacific Command's theater.

过去20年，五角大楼仅在太平洋司令部负责的地区就对40多起灾难做出了响应。

U.S. Marines are tweaking the way they equip, train, and deploy their expeditionary units to better handle these missions.

美国海军陆战队正在改进他们装备、训练和部署远征队的方式，以便更好地开展救援行动。

Suspicions about U.S. motives persisted in some countries, however, especially Myanmar, whose government at the time was critical of interference.

不过，一些国家一直对美国的动机心存怀疑，特别是缅甸。2008年缅甸受灾时，缅甸政府对美国的干预颇有微词。