日中首脳会談 中国は互恵の前に報復撤回を

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 7, 2010)
Kan must take firm line on Chinese aggression
日中首脳会談　中国は互恵の前に報復撤回を（10月6日付・読売社説）

Monday's impromptu meeting between Japanese and Chinese leaders is expected to open the door for the two countries to mend their ties, which have been strained since last month's collision between a Chinese trawler and two Japan Coast Guard vessels in Japanese waters near the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea.
　日中両首脳の対話が実現したことは、尖閣諸島沖の漁船衝突事件で悪化した両国関係を修復する契機となろう。

Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao held talks on the sidelines of the Asia-Europe Meeting in Brussels. The two leaders agreed to resume high-level negotiations and civic exchanges between the two countries, which China unilaterally suspended.
　菅首相と中国の温家宝首相が、ベルギーで開かれたアジア欧州会議（ＡＳＥＭ）首脳会議の合間を利用して会談した。中国が一方的に中止していた日中のハイレベル協議や民間交流について復活させることで合意した。

If Japan-China economic ties cool, it will slow down China's growth, possibly resulting in mounting frustrations in the country. It also will inevitably stagnate the transfer of Japan's environmental and energy-saving technology, which is highly anticipated by China.
　日中の経済関係を冷え込ませれば、中国も成長の鈍化を招き、国内不満を高める恐れがある。中国が望む日本の環境・省エネ技術の移転も、停滞が避けられまい。

Moreover, China's hard-nosed diplomacy gave the impression to the international community that the country is aggressive, as France's Le Monde newspaper described it. China apparently decided to go ahead with the unscheduled meeting after concluding that further complicating the Japan-China relationship will cost it a lot.
　加えて中国の圧力外交は、国際社会に「粗暴な大国」（仏ル・モンド紙）との印象を与えた。中国側は、日中関係をこれ以上こじらせては失うものが大きいとして、首脳会談に応じたのだろう。

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China needs Japan

It is also believed that China did not want the current row to adversely affect the scheduled attendance of Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum set to open in Yokohama next month.
　来月、横浜で開催されるアジア太平洋経済協力会議（ＡＰＥＣ）への胡錦濤国家主席の出席に影響が及ぶ事態は避けたい、という事情もあったに違いない。

In their meeting, the two leaders confirmed they should return to the "starting point" of promoting a strategic, mutually beneficial relationship. If that is the case, we believe it is China's responsibility to completely retract the retaliatory measures it has taken following the collision incident near the Senkaku Islands.
　会談では、戦略的互恵関係を進展させるとの「原点」に戻ることを確認した。それならば中国は、その前提として、今回の衝突事件を受けて行った対日報復措置を完全に撤回するのが筋だろう。

Beijing must release a Japanese employee of Fujita Corp. who has been held since Sept. 20 for allegedly entering a military zone without permission. China has continued to hold him despite releasing three other Japanese employees of the company.
China must also normalize its exports of rare earth minerals to Japan.
　拘束を継続する建設会社「フジタ」社員を早期に解放するのは無論、レアアース（希土類）の対日輸出も正常化すべきだ。

The Kan administration must show a resolute stance against China in handling problems concerning Japan's sovereignty and maritime interests, even as it deepens ties with China in trade and other fields.
　菅政権は今後、貿易などで中国との関係を深めるとしても、主権や海洋権益の問題では、毅然(きぜん)とした姿勢を示す必要がある。

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Release collision video

In the wake of the collision incident, Chinese authorities started deploying fisheries patrol boats near the Senkaku Islands around the clock.
　中国当局は、漁船衝突事件を機に、尖閣諸島近海に漁業監視船を常駐させるようになった。

Fishing boats in the vanguard, followed by fisheries patrol boats--this is exactly the same as the strategy China has taken in advancing into the South China Sea. We absolutely cannot overlook this.
　漁船が“先兵”役を果たし、漁業監視船がこれに続くのは、中国が南シナ海での海洋進出で取った手法だ。到底、看過できない。

The Kan administration must strongly demand China exercise self-restraint. It must also step up monitoring by the JCG.
　菅政権は、中国側に強く自制を迫ると同時に、海上保安庁による監視体制を強化すべきだ。

In addition, the government must no longer, out of unnecessary consideration to China, hesitate to release JCG video footage of one of the collisions.
　海保が撮影した衝突時のビデオも、中国側への無用な配慮で公開をためらうべきではない。

A recent Yomiuri Shimbun survey showed that about 70 percent of the public viewed Japanese prosecutors' release of the Chinese skipper as inappropriate. Of those, 40 percent said they thought this gave the impression that Japan would cave in when pressured.
　読売新聞の世論調査では、中国人船長の釈放を不適切と受け止めている人は７割にのぼり、そのうちの４割が「日本は圧力をかけると譲歩するという印象を与えるから」を理由に挙げた。

More than 80 percent said they felt anxiety over the Democratic Party of Japan's handling of diplomatic affairs.
　民主党の外交姿勢に「不安を感じる」と答えた人も、８割を超えている。

Kan must be fully aware that many people in the country are strictly scrutinizing the government, and he must proactively carry out diplomacy that serves the national interests.
　菅首相は、国民の多くが厳しい視線を送っていることを強く自覚し、国益に立った外交を積極的に展開しなければならない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 6, 2010)
（2010年10月6日01時44分 読売新聞）