米韓首脳会談 日本のＴＰＰ参加促すＦＴＡ

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Oct. 17, 2011)
U.S.-South Korea pact should spur Japan on TPP
米韓首脳会談　日本のＴＰＰ参加促すＦＴＡ（10月16日付・読売社説）

The alliance between the United States and South Korea can be said to have deepened to a new dimension with the latest reinforcement of their bilateral economic relations.
　経済関係の強化によって米韓同盟は新たな次元へ深化したと言える。

South Korean President Lee Myung Bak and U.S. President Barack Obama held talks in Washington on Thursday and agreed that a free trade agreement between the two countries would take effect soon.
　韓国の李明博大統領がワシントンでオバマ米大統領と会談し、米韓の自由貿易協定（ＦＴＡ）の早期発効を目指すことで一致した。

South Korea and the United States agreed on the free trade accord four years ago, but ratification was delayed in both countries.
　米韓ＦＴＡは４年前にいったん合意したのに、批准が遅れていた。

The U.S. Congress approved the agreement Wednesday, and the South Korean National Assembly is expected to do so this year.
首脳会談の前日、米議会が実施法案を可決し、韓国も年内の国会承認を目指している。

The U.S.-South Korea FTA is expected to take effect as early as next January.
来年１月にも発効する見通しだ。

Once it is in effect, 95 percent of goods traded between the two countries will be duty-free within five years.
　発効から５年以内に、９５％の物品で両国の関税はゼロとなる。

The Obama administration expects the U.S.-South Korea FTA to boost U.S. exports by 11 billion dollars (about 850 billion yen) a year and create more than 70,000 jobs in the United States.
　オバマ政権は、米韓ＦＴＡによる経済効果を、年間１１０億ドル（約８５００億円）、７万人以上の雇用創出と見込んでいる。

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Jobs top priority for Obama

With a U.S. presidential election scheduled for November 2012, employment has become the highest priority for the Obama administration, as the jobless rate remains high at 9 percent.
　来年１１月の米大統領選に向け、失業率が９％に高止まりする中、雇用は米政権の最優先課題だ。

The administration has high hopes for the FTA with South Korea, the biggest such deal since the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico in 1994.
カナダ、メキシコとの北米自由貿易協定（ＮＡＦＴＡ）以来の大型ＦＴＡにかける期待は大きい。

South Korea expects the FTA to push up its gross domestic product by 5.7 percent and create 350,000 jobs. 　韓国も、国内総生産（ＧＤＰ）を５・７％押し上げ、３５万人の雇用増につながると試算する。

South Korea, which already has an FTA in effect with the European Union, will gain a further boost to its exports as a result of an expanded market.
欧州連合（ＥＵ）とすでにＦＴＡを発効させた韓国は、市場圏拡大で輸出に一段と弾みがつこう。

More than 60 percent of South Korea's trade is conducted with its FTA partner countries and regions, including those with which it is currently negotiating trade deals.
　韓国は、交渉中のものまで含めるとＦＴＡ相手国・地域との貿易額は全体の６割以上に達する。

Japan lags South Korea in this regard--its trade with FTA partners accounts for less than 40 percent of the total.
４割に満たない日本の出遅れが目立つ。

It is understandable that export-oriented business sectors, including the automobile industry, are becoming increasingly alarmed, as this could put them at a disadvantage with South Korean rivals.
日本の自動車など輸出産業界が、韓国企業との競争で不利な条件を強いられることに危機感を募らせるのも当然だ。

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda should swiftly decide that Japan will participate in talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade accord.
　野田首相は、環太平洋経済連携協定（ＴＰＰ）への参加を、速やかに決断すべきである。

Obama hopes to reach a broad agreement with other participants in the TPP talks at the summit meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Hawaii next month.
　オバマ大統領は来月、ハワイでのアジア太平洋経済協力会議（ＡＰＥＣ）首脳会議を機に、ＴＰＰの大枠合意を目指している。

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Check on China

The TPP will help the United States create a U.S.-led economic zone in Asia--a base for global economic growth--and serve as a check on China, which is increasing its influence.
　米国にとってＴＰＰは、世界経済の成長拠点であるアジアで、米国が主導する経済圏を作り、影響力を強めようとする中国を牽制(けんせい)する狙いがあろう。

Also, stronger relations with South Korea, a U.S. ally and neighbor of China, are geopolitically significant for the United States.
　地政学的にも、中国に近接する同盟国・韓国との関係強化は大きな意味を持つ。

In an indication of the importance the United States attaches to South Korea, it is backing South Korea's bid to host a meeting of Group of 20 leaders in Seoul and regards the U.S.-South Korea alliance as a cornerstone for the security of the Pacific region.
米国が主要２０か国・地域（Ｇ２０）首脳会議のソウル開催を後押しし、米韓同盟を「太平洋地域の安全保障の礎」と位置づけるのも韓国重視の表れだ。

During their latest talks, the leaders of the United States and South Korea also agreed to strengthen cooperation so their countries could respond promptly and effectively to North Korea, which is continuing its nuclear and missile development.
　米韓首脳は今回、核・ミサイル開発を続ける北朝鮮に対し、迅速で実効性ある対応ができるよう連携を強化する点でも一致した。

Noda, who will visit South Korea on Tuesday, must work to strengthen bilateral ties with South Korea from a strategic viewpoint, through such means as early resumption of talks on a bilateral economic partnership and a coordinated response to North Korea.
　１８日に訪韓する野田首相は、北朝鮮への対処は無論、経済連携協定（ＥＰＡ）交渉の早期再開も含めて、戦略的な観点から日韓関係の強化に努める必要がある。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Oct. 16, 2011)
（2011年10月16日01時09分 読売新聞）