朴大統領就任 日韓関係の改善を期待したい

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Feb. 27, 2013)
Can Park open the door to better Japan-S. Korea ties?
朴大統領就任　日韓関係の改善を期待したい（2月26日付・読売社説）

We hope the chilled relationship between Tokyo and Seoul will thaw under the new South Korean administration.
　韓国新政権発足を機に日韓関係が改善に向かうことを期待したい。

On Monday, Park Geun Hye took office as the first female president of South Korea, a country currently facing plenty of challenges. Park's father is the late former President Park Chung Hee, and this is the first time an offspring of a former South Korean president has assumed the top post.
　課題山積の中で、韓国の朴槿恵氏が大統領に就任した。初の女性大統領であり、朴正煕元大統領との初の親子２代にわたる大統領だ。

The new president held talks with Deputy Prime Minister Taro Aso, who attended Park's inauguration ceremony. It is praiseworthy that the two agreed on the necessity of cooperating closely and building a future-oriented relationship between the two countries.
　朴氏は、就任式に出席した麻生副総理と会談した。日韓両国が未来志向で緊密に協力していく必要性で一致したのは評価できる。

However, the current state of Japan-South Korea relations is severe. It deteriorated rapidly after Lee Myung Bak, Park's predecessor, visited the Takeshima islands last year and demanded the Emperor apologize for the wartime past. Seoul recently lodged a complaint with Tokyo over the attendance of a Cabinet Office parliamentary secretary at a commemoration ceremony on Takeshima Day, an event hosted by the Shimane prefectural government.
　ただ、現状は厳しい。李明博前大統領の竹島訪問と「天皇の謝罪」要求発言で日韓関係は悪化したからだ。島根県主催の「竹島の日」式典への内閣府政務官出席に韓国政府は抗議したばかりである。

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Learn from past mistakes

Previous South Korean administrations also have trumpeted future-oriented relationships. However, in the end, they have derailed these diplomatic efforts through their actions on territorial issues and historical perceptions. Park's leadership will be tested over whether she can prevent her administration from repeating the mistakes of her predecessors.
　歴代の韓国政権は、未来志向をうたいながら、歴史認識や領土問題で結局は対日外交を暗礁に乗り上げさせた。その轍(てつ)を踏まないのか、朴氏の指導力が問われる。

Dark clouds are hovering over South Korea's economy, which had been performing solidly for years. That country's growth rate dropped to the 2 percent level last year, and its export-led economy has been buffeted by a headwind caused by the won's appreciation. South Korea's chaebol conglomerates have developed rapidly by riding the tide of globalization, but this has not led to the creation of jobs.
　好調を維持してきた韓国経済にはかげりも見える。経済成長率は昨年、２％台にまで落ち込んだ。輸出主導モデルにウォン高の逆風が吹いている。グローバル化の潮流に乗って財閥は発展したが、国内の雇用創出につながらない。

With a declining birthrate and aging population, South Korea needs to improve its pension and health insurance systems to dispel public anxiety over what life holds for them in old age.
　少子高齢化時代が到来し、老後不安の解消へ年金や医療保険制度の充実を図らねばならない。

Park pledged to tackle such problems in her inauguration speech. She referred to the "miracle on the Han River," the dramatic economic development achieved under her father's administration, and stressed she would bring about a "second miracle on the Han River."
　こうした課題の解決に向け、朴氏は就任演説で、経済発展を成し遂げた父・正煕氏の「漢江の奇跡」に言及し、「第２の奇跡」を起こすと強調した。

It will be crucial for her to materialize her plan to expand domestic demand and employment by reinforcing the competitiveness of small and midsize South Korean companies and nurturing venture firms.
　中小企業の競争力強化や、ベンチャー企業の育成によって、雇用と内需の拡大につなげる構想を、具体化することが必要だろう。

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Cooperate more with allies

Regarding diplomacy and national security, Park demanded North Korea "abandon its nuclear ambitions without delay." She also showed willingness to hold talks with Pyongyang by saying, "I will move forward step-by-step on the basis of credible deterrence to build trust between the South and the North."
　外交・安全保障を巡っては、朴氏は北朝鮮に「一日も早い核放棄」を求めた。「確実な抑止力を土台に、南北の信頼関係を積み重ねる」と、対話へ意欲も示した。

South Korea has recently accelerated the reinforcement of its defense capability, such as by extending the range of its ballistic missiles, as the security threat posed by North Korea grows. According to an opinion poll, more than 60 percent of respondents supported South Korea acquiring nuclear weapons.
　増大する北朝鮮の脅威に対し、韓国では弾道ミサイルの射程延長など国防力を強化する動きが顕著だ。世論調査では、韓国の核武装を支持する声も６０％を超える。

It will be essential for countries neighboring North Korea to cooperate more closely to deal with heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula. Park was quite right to mention she will work to strengthen trust with countries including "the United States, China, Japan and Russia" to ease tensions and conflicts in Asia and promote peace and cooperation in the region.
　緊張が高まる朝鮮半島情勢に対処するには、周辺国の連携強化が欠かせない。朴氏が、アジア地域の緊張・対立の緩和と平和・協力の推進へ、「米国、中国、日本、ロシア」などと信頼を築き上げると述べたのは当然だろう。

China has a dominant presence in South Korea. South Korea's trade with China exceeds that with the United States and Japan combined. The annual flow of people between China and South Korea exceeds that between Japan and South Korea by more than 1 million.
　韓国で、中国の存在感は圧倒的だ。対中貿易は、対米、対日を合計した額を凌駕(りょうが)しており、中韓の人的往来は日韓のそれを年間１００万人以上も上回っている。

All eyes are closely watching whether South Korea will cozy up more to China as it boosts its presence on the peninsula, as this issue certainly has security implications for Japan.
　韓国が、朝鮮半島で存在感を増す中国への傾斜を深めるかどうかは、日本の安全にも影響する問題だけに、目を離せない。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Feb. 26, 2013)
（2013年2月26日01時21分  読売新聞）