日本防卫相：将加强钓鱼岛周边防务
New Japan Defense Chief to Boost Security of Southwest Waters
Japan’s new defense minister said the government is preparing to enhance its air and sea defense capabilities to protect islands and waters in the nation’s southwest, part of the broad swath of the western Pacific where China has increased its maritime activities in recent years.
日本新任防卫大臣表示，日本政府正在准备加强空中和海上防卫力量，保护日本西南部岛屿和水域。日本西南部岛屿和水域位于西太平洋的辽阔海域上，最近几年中国增加了在西太平洋地区的海上活动。
’Japan has 6,800 islands, and territory that stretches over 3,300 kilometers [2,000 miles]; it’s necessary to have troops at its southwestern end to beef up our warning and surveillance capability,’ Satoshi Morimoto told The Wall Street Journal on Monday in his first interview with a non-Japanese news organization since he took office this month.
森本敏(Satoshi Morimoto)周一接受《华尔街日报》采访时说，日本拥有6,800座岛屿，日本的领土绵延3,300公里(约合2,000英里)，很有必要在西南端驻扎部队，加强我们的预警和侦察能力。这是森本敏本月就任日本防卫相以来首次接受外国新闻机构的采访。
’We must defend without fail our sovereign rights and our land that includes the Senkaku islands,’ he added, referring to a chain of islands also claimed by China, which calls them Diaoyu. ’We must strengthen our overall defense capability in the southwest.’
他补充说，我们必须坚决捍卫国家主权和领土完整，包括尖阁列岛(Senkaku，中国称钓鱼岛)。尖阁列岛是一个岛屿链，中国也宣称对尖阁列岛拥有主权。森本敏说，我们必须加强在西南部的整体防御能力。
Mr. Morimoto also said one of his priorities as defense minister is to push for policies that will strengthen the bilateral alliance with the U.S. ’The most important task for people who think about Japan’s national security and build its policy is making the alliance even more reliable,’ he said.
森本敏还说，他作为防卫相的首要任务之一，是推动制定能够加强美日同盟的政策。他说，对思考日本国家安全、制定日本国家安全政策的人来说，最重要的任务是让同盟关系更加牢固。
Mr. Morimoto brings to the embattled government of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda a combination of a nonpolitical résumé and first-class knowledge of national security that has generated rare excitement among the public. He also comes with unapologetically hawkish views on how Japan should protect itself amid rising geopolitical tensions in East Asia.
对于焦头烂额的野田佳彦(Yoshihiko Noda)政府来说，森本敏既带来了非职业政治家的背景，也带来了国家安全方面的一流学识，这种结合让日本民众异常兴奋。对于日本应该如何在东亚日益加剧的地缘政治紧张局势中保护自己，他有着绝不低头的强硬派主张。
Tapping Mr. Morimoto was a gamble for Mr. Noda, who is struggling to pass a controversial tax bill in a divided parliament and facing a possible breakup of his own party.
启用森本敏是野田佳彦的一次冒险之举。野田佳彦正在艰难地寻求在四分五裂的议会中通过一项饱受争议的税收法案，同时还面临着自己领导的政党解体的可能性。
Mr. Morimoto, 71 years old, has an unusual background for a Japanese cabinet minister. He isn’t an elected official and his unconventional career path included 14 years in uniform at the Air Self-Defense Force, a stint as a civilian foreign-service officer, and nearly two decades as a college professor.
与其他内阁大臣相比，今年71岁的森本敏拥有不同寻常的背景。他不是民选官员。在他异于常规的职业生涯中，有14年在日本航空自卫队服役，曾担任外事文职官员，并有将近20年的时间担任大学教授。
His conservative views on defense issues are controversial. They are characterized by staunch support of the bilateral security alliance with the U.S. and a hard-line stance toward Japan’s neighbors, namely China and North Korea.
森本敏在防务问题上的保守派观点一直饱受争议。他坚决支持美日安保同盟，并对日本邻国──中国和韩国持强硬立场。
As a frequent contributor to conservative daily the Sankei Shimbun, Mr. Morimoto described the 2010 Senkaku-Diaoyu spat as having uncovered ’China’s unilateral, coercive and naked intention to expand its maritime rule.’
森本敏经常为保守派日报《产经新闻》(Sankei Shimbun)撰文。他曾在文章中说，2010年的钓鱼岛争端暴露了中国单边、强制性和赤裸裸的扩张海上统治的意图。
