シリア国際会議 和平への道筋は見えてくるか

The Yomiuri Shimbun January 24, 2014
Will international efforts bring hope of achieving peace in war-torn Syria?
シリア国際会議　和平への道筋は見えてくるか（1月24日付・読売社説）

Will prospects emerge of stopping the bloodshed in Syria?
　流血を止める道筋は見えてくるのだろうか。

An international, ministerial-level conference on ending the civil war in Syria was held Wednesday and Thursday in Montreux, Switzerland.
　シリア内戦の終結を目指す国際和平会議の閣僚級協議が、スイス・モントルーで行われた。

After nearly three years of bloodshed, the conference brought representatives of Syrian President Bashar Assad’s administration and antiregime forces to the negotiating table for the first time. This must be used as a chance to work toward realizing peace.
　３年近い内戦を通じてアサド政権と反体制派が話し合いのテーブルにつくのは初めてだ。和平に向けた節目としたい。

The conference was held under the auspices of the United Nations, with representatives attending from more than 40 countries, including Japan and the United States, and international organizations. Based on the agreement hammered out by the countries involved in the 2012 Geneva talks, the participants discussed the establishment of a transitional government that would include antiregime forces.
　国連主催の協議には、日米など４０余りの国や国際機関の代表が参加した。２０１２年にジュネーブで開かれた関係国会合の合意に基づき、反体制派を含む移行政府の樹立を話し合った。

But the ministerial conference saw the differing views of representatives from the Assad administration and the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, as they criticized each other while dragging in other participants. This may underscore the grim prospects ahead.
　だが、閣僚級協議は、政権と反体制派代表の「国民連合」の主張がかみ合わず、他の出席者も巻き込んだ非難の応酬に終始した。前途の険しさを示したと言える。

Branding the civil war as a “battle against terrorism,” Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem aggressively criticized the opposition forces. One factor behind his hard-line stance could be the strengthening of the country’s diplomatic position due to its cooperation in relinquishing chemical weapons and the fact that government forces have been maintaining superiority on the battlefield. Russia supported the position of the Assad government.
　シリア外相は、内戦を「テロとの戦い」と位置づけ、強気の姿勢で反体制派を非難した。化学兵器廃棄に協力していることで外交的立場が強まり、戦場でも優勢を保っているからだろう。ロシアも政権の擁護に回った。

Split over Assad exit

The president of the National Coalition, on the other hand, called for the exit of Assad and the establishment of a transitional government afterward. However, the coalition has not been able to bring together the antiregime forces, with groups under its umbrella leaving one after another. The international community’s confidence in the coalition is limited.
　これに対し、国民連合議長は、アサド大統領退陣を訴え、その上で移行政府を樹立すべきだと主張した。ただ、国民連合は、傘下組織の離反が相次いで、反体制派をまとめ切れていない。国際社会の信頼も限定的だ。

The United States sided with the Syrian National Coalition. This came against a backdrop of many countries, including Britain and Japan, endorsing a plan to establish a transitional government including the coalition, but not explicitly calling for the ouster of Assad.
　今回の協議で、米国は国民連合に同調した。英国や日本のように国民連合を含む移行政府樹立を支持しつつも、アサド退陣を明示的には求めない国も多かった。

The death toll from the Syrian civil war has topped 120,000, and about 9 million people have been forced to flee outside the country or become internally displaced. The relevant countries must do more to end the hostilities as early as possible.
　内戦の死者は１２万人を超え、約９００万人が、難民や国内避難民となっている。この危機を一刻も早く終わらせるため、関係各国はさらに努力せねばならない。

Taking advantage of the turmoil, radical Islam groups related to the Al-Qaida international terrorist organization have been ramping up their influence, complicating the situation further.
　混乱に乗じ、国際テロ組織アル・カーイダ系のイスラム過激派武装勢力が影響力を増していることも情勢を一層複雑化している。

The Assad administration and the National Coalition are scheduled to hold direct negotiations in Geneva, following the just-ended ministerial conference in Switzerland.
　アサド政権と国民連合は、閣僚級協議に続き、ジュネーブで直接交渉を行う予定だ。

Of note is the fact that the foreign ministers of the United States and Russia have proposed a ceasefire limited to Syria’s northern province of Aleppo. The United Nations will work on the two warring groups to accept the proposal in their direct talks.
　注目されるのは、米露外相が、北部アレッポに限定した停戦を提案していることである。国連は直接交渉で、政権と国民連合双方に、提案受け入れを働きかける。

The negotiations are certain to face rough going. But if at least a partial ceasefire can be realized, it will become possible for humanitarian assistance to be delivered to inhabitants in the regions where the conflict is taking place. Full efforts must be made to build a consensus on the matter.
　交渉は難航確実だが、部分停戦でも実現できれば、紛争地の住民に人道支援を届けられる。合意形成に全力を挙げてもらいたい。

In the ministerial conference, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida talked about Japan’s efforts to bolster assistance to refugees, and Japan announced humanitarian aid of $400 million (about ¥42 billion). Japan’s contribution toward the stabilization of Syria will continue to be called for.
　閣僚級協議には岸田外相が出席し、難民支援などへの取り組みを強化していると述べた。日本の表明した人道支援額は、合計４億ドル（約４２０億円）に上る。今後もシリアの安定に向け、日本のできる貢献が問われ続けよう。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Jan. 24, 2014)
（2014年1月24日01時27分  読売新聞）