广州英语翻译公司：中美加大南中国海角力

China and US raise stakes over South China Sea dispute

中美加大南中国海角力

广州英语翻译公司：美国一些官员称，奥巴马曾在今年3月向习近平发出强烈警告，之后中国貌似在斯卡伯勒浅滩填海造岛问题上做出了让步。

US President Barack Obama in March delivered a stark admonition to Xi Jinping over the South China Sea, warning the Chinese leader of serious consequences if China reclaimed land at Scarborough Shoal, one of the most dangerous flashpoints in Asia.

今年3月，美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马(Barack Obama)曾就南中国海问题向中国国家主席习近平发出强烈警告，告诫这位中国领导人若中国在斯卡伯勒浅滩（Scarborough Shoal，中国称黄岩岛）填海造岛，将导致严重后果。斯卡伯勒浅滩是亚洲最危险的“导火索”之一。广州英语翻译公司。

According to current and former officials, Mr Obama raised the stakes with Mr Xi afterUSintelligence concluded thatChinawas moving towards reclaiming land at the shoal where Chinese andPhilippinesships engaged in a high-stakes confrontation in 2012.

根据现任和前任官员的说法，奥巴马那次增加对习近平的压力之前，美国情报部门断定中国准备在斯卡伯勒浅滩填海造岛。2012年，中国和菲律宾的船只曾在该浅滩陷入高风险的对峙。

Following the meeting in Washington,Chinawithdrew its ships from the area. That gave the White House a victory that some officials saw as vindication for a tougher approach than over the previous three years when it failed to force China to curb its controversial activities in the South China Sea.

在华盛顿会晤后，中国从该地区撤回了船只。对于白宫的那次胜利，部分官员认为，它证明采取比之前三年更强硬的路线是正确的，之前三年美国未能迫使中国抑制其在南中国海的具有争议的行为。广州英语翻译公司。

“The signalling from the US side was that this was serious,” said a former official. “There was an accumulation of pieces … the conclusion was that the People’s Liberation Army was advocating (action). It wasn’t necessarily indicators that Xi himself had made any decisions, but there was the feeling that it was on his desk and coming to him for a decision.”

一位前官员表示：“美国一方释放的信号是，这个问题十分严重。证据不断增加……致使美国得出结论：中国人民解放军(PLA)在支持（这类行动）。这不一定表示习近平本人做了任何决定，但给人的感觉是该问题摆到了习近平的案头，并由他来做决定。”

One reason for the tougher US line was concern that China would try to cement its control of Scarborough before a ruling, expected on Tuesday, by an international tribunal adjudicating a case brought by the Philippines against China.

美国采取更强硬路线的原因之一是，担心中国或会企图在南中国海仲裁案作出裁决之前，巩固对斯卡伯勒浅滩的控制。该案为菲律宾诉中国仲裁案，海牙的国际法庭本周二作出裁决。广州英语翻译公司。

“Obama’s meeting with Xi in March appears to have been a key turning point,” said Evan Medeiros, managing director at Eurasia Group and the top White House Asia adviser until last year. “Obama made crystal clear theUSinterests at stake and the risk of military escalation. Afterwards Beijing did not take the expected provocative action towards thePhilippines.”

欧亚集团(Eurasia Group)董事总经理、去年卸任白宫亚洲事务最高顾问的麦艾文(Evan Medeiros)表示：“奥巴马3月份与习近平的会晤，似乎是个关键的转折点。奥巴马极为明确地说明了美国的相关利益和军事行动升级的风险。在那之后，中国政府没有针对菲律宾采取预期中的挑衅行为。”

Chinahas come under criticism for building man-made islands in recent years, but theUSsaw Scarborough as more strategically significant given its proximity to the coast of thePhilippines, which has a mutual defence treaty with theUS. One former official said Washington was also sensitive to Chinese activity at Scarborough sinceChina“hoodwinked” theUSin 2012 by reneging on a deal to end the standoff with Manila.

近年来，中国因修建人工岛而受到批评，但由于斯卡伯勒浅滩临近与美国签订了共同防御条约的菲律宾的海岸线，在美国眼中该浅滩更具战略重要性。一名前任官员表示，中国曾在2012年“欺骗”美国，背弃了一项与菲律宾结束对峙的协定，这也导致美国对中国在斯卡伯勒浅滩的活动很敏感。广州英语翻译公司。

Some officials worried thatChinacould install radar and missiles on Scarborough. Along with facilities in the Paracel and Spratly Islands, that would helpChinacreate a strategic triangle, which would enable the policing of any air defence identification zone in the South China Sea.

一些官员担心，中国可能在斯卡伯勒浅滩上部署雷达和导弹。结合位于帕拉塞尔群岛（Paracel islands，中国称西沙群岛）和斯普拉特利群岛（Spratly Islands，中国称南沙群岛）上的设施，这将帮助中国建立一个战略三角，使中国能够管制南中国海上空的任何防空识别区。

Several of the people familiar with the Obama-Xi meeting said the warning about the impact on Sino-US relations was critical because Mr Obama stressed that any reclamation at Scarborough would cross a red line. He made clear that the resulting rise in tensions would hurtChinain a year when theUSwas holding a presidential election andChinawas hosting the Group of 20 summit.

几名了解习奥会内情的人士表示，有关中美关系所受影响的警告很关键，因为奥巴马强调在斯卡伯勒浅滩上进行任何填海造岛工程都将跨越红线。他明确指出，这种行为导致的紧张升级将在美国举行总统大选、中国举行20国集团(G20)峰会的这一年伤害中国。广州英语翻译公司。

Chris Johnson, a former topChinaanalyst at the CIA, says that whileChinaappeared to have pulled back for now, there was little evidence to suggest theUShad won a strategic victory. “China’s decision this spring not to significantly reclaim Scarborough Shoal certainly is consistent with the administration’s narrative of a Chinese climb down, but Beijing’s decision making is more opaque under President Xi than ever before,” he said. “The administration has no reason to conclude that Xi has ever shown willingness to be flexible on the issue ofChina’s sovereignty in the South China Sea.”

前美国中央情报局(CIA)中国事务高级分析师克里斯•约翰逊(Chris Johnson)表示，尽管现在中国看起来进行了退让，但几乎没有证据表明美国取得了战略性胜利。“中国今年春天做出了不在斯卡伯勒浅滩进行大规模填海造岛的决定，这显然与奥巴马政府有关中国做出让步的说法一致，但在习近平治下，北京方面的决策比以前更不透明了。”他说，“奥巴马政府没有理由得出结论认为，习近平表达过灵活处理中国南中国海主权问题的意愿。”

The Pentagon following the Xi-Obama meeting with increased activity in the region. In late April, US Pacific Command took the rare step of saying it had flown A-10 Warthogs, which are not usually used for surveillance, near Scarborough to provide “air and maritime situational awareness”.

在习奥会后，五角大楼在该地区的活动增多。4月下旬，美国太平洋司令部罕见地表示，向斯卡伯勒浅滩附近派遣了多架通常不用于侦察的A-10攻击机，以提供“空中和海上的态势感知”。 广州英语翻译公司。

One military official said that while the White House had long viewed reclamation at Scarborough as a red line and was pleased with the current result, some parts of government, including Pacific Command, were more sceptical. “The real question is what happens after the G20,” the official said.

一位军官表示，尽管长期以来美国政府一直将在斯卡伯勒浅滩填海造岛视为一道红线，并对目前的结果感到满意，但一些政府机构（包括美国太平洋司令部）持较怀疑的态度。这位官员表示：“真正的问题是G20会议后会发生什么。”

Andrew Shearer, a former Australian national security adviser now at CSIS, said the Chinese move was only a “tactical victory” for theUS. “Over the past two years,USpolicy has failed to preventChinafrom largely succeeding in the de facto militarisation of the South China Sea,” he said. “Media reports suggest that when Pentagon officials and Pacific Command have pushed for a stronger response, the White House has consistently reined them in for fear of jeopardising Chinese support on global issues such as climate change.”

前澳大利亚国家安全顾问、目前在美国战略与国际问题研究中心(CSIS)任职的安德鲁•希勒(Andrew Shearer)表示，中国的让步对于美国而言只不过是一次“战术性胜利”。“过去两年，美国政策未能阻止中国在对南中国海实行事实上的军事化方面基本取得成功，”他表示，“媒体报道称，当美国国防部官员和太平洋司令部敦促采取更强硬回应时，美国政府始终在压制他们，以免破坏中国对气候变化等全球性问题的支持。”广州英语翻译公司。

Mr Obama’s rhetoric also came weeks after he had ordered a new strategy following a meeting with Southeast Asian leaders in California where they criticisedChina. The move also signals a subtle shift in the pendulum towards Pacific Command, which has long urged the White House to take a more assertive stance onChina.

奥巴马在强烈警告中国的几周前，在与东南亚领导人在加州召开会议、并在会上共同批评中国后，他曾下令制定一项新战略。此举还表明美国政府的态度微妙地向太平洋司令部靠拢，后者长期以来一直敦促美国政府对中国采取更强硬态度。

Ned Price, White House national security council spokesman, denied the accounts of both meetings, saying Mr Obama had “consistently raised issues of maritime security” with Mr Xi. “The characterisation by unnamed officials — none of whom were present — of the conversation between President Obama and President Xi at the Nuclear Security Summit is inaccurate and does not capture what transpired then or subsequently.”

美国白宫国家安全委员会发言人内德•普赖斯(Ned Price)否认外界有关这两次会议的描述，他表示，奥巴马“不断”向习近平“提出海上安全的问题”。“并不在场的不具名官员对于奥巴马总统与习近平主席在核安全峰会(Nuclear Security Summit)上的对话的描述是不准确的，没有反映出当时或后来发生的情况。”

As tensions between theUSandChinahave risen over the South China Sea, Mr Obama and Mr Xi have both begun to worry about the growing risk of confrontation. “Both presidents recognise the strategic value of us getting along,” said one official familiar with the March meeting. “But the more [the Chinese] show that they don’t want to work with the international community, the more we’re going to do what we have to do.

随着中美有关南中国海问题的紧张态势升级，奥巴马和习近平都开始担心日益上升的对抗风险。“两位领导人都意识到了两国友好相处的战略意义，”一位了解今年3月习奥会的官员表示，“但（中国人）越显示出他们不愿与国际社会合作，我们就越要做我们必须做的事情。”

广州英语翻译公司