日本發佈國家安全保障戰略

Japan’s government will next week confirm its commitment to building a stronger military to counter perceived security threats including an increasingly powerful China, according to a draft of its first national security strategy released on Wednesday.

根據週三發佈的日本首份國家安全保障戰略(NSS)草案，日本政府將在下週證實，該國將致力於打造一支更強大的武裝力量，以反制日本眼中的安全威脅，包括日益強大的中國。

Shinzo Abe, the conservative prime minister, hailed the document as “historic” because it will be used to guide policies for a new national security council, a US-style body created by the prime minister as part of his effort to distance Japan from its post-second world war pacifism.

保守派首相安倍晉三(Shinzo Abe)稱讚這份文件是“歷史性的”，因爲它將被用於指導新成立的國家安全保障會議(National Security Council)的各項政策——後者是安倍參照美國模式建立的組織，也是他帶領日本與二戰後和平主義拉開距離的努力的一部分。

“We have been working to rebuild our national security policy with a firm commitment to defend people’s lives and property,” Mr Abe said.

“我們一直在努力重建我國的國家安全政策，堅定致力於保衛國民的生命和財產，”安倍表示。

The draft, which is expected to be adopted by Mr Abe’s cabinet next week, identifies threats and challenges that have been named in previous official defence analyses, Most prominently North Korea’s nuclear programme and a rapid and “opaque” expansion of China’s military power.

預計將在下週得到安倍內閣批准的這份草案，列出了以往官方防衛分析中已被指明的各項威脅和挑戰，最突出的是朝鮮的核武計劃和中國軍力的快速且“不透明”的擴張。

It commits Japan to “continue walking the path of a peaceful nation” but envisions a more “active” peacekeeping role in Asia that would involve closer military co-operation with allies such as the US and Australia, as well as the possible formal elimination of a ban on weapons exports.

文件承諾，日本將“繼續走在和平國家的道路上”，但也設想將在亞洲扮演更爲“積極的”維和角色，包括與美國和澳大利亞等盟友開展更緊密的軍事合作，同時有可能正式廢除武器出口禁令。

That ban has been in place since the 1960s, albeit with an increasing number of exemptions, such as components for US-developed anti-ballistic missile systems. The draft says it should be “reconsidered” entirely.

這個禁令是從上世紀60年代開始執行的，儘管其豁免項目（比如美國開發的反彈道導彈系統的零部件）在不斷增加。戰略草案稱，這個禁令應得到全面的“重新考慮”。

More broadly, Japan should “strengthen its own capabilities and expand its role” in regional defence, according to the document, which was endorsed by an expert committee appointed by Mr Abe and whose principles are intended to guide Japan’s security policy for the coming decade.

根據這份文件，在更廣泛的層面上， 日本應當加強自身實力，在地區防衛方面扮演更重要的角色。這份文件已得到安倍任命的一個專家委員會的認可，其原則意在指導日本未來10年的安全政策。

A defence-policy outline released alongside the security strategy called for the establishment of stronger intelligence, early warning and surveillance networks to defend Japan’s sea and air territory.

與安全保障戰略同時出爐的《防衛計劃大綱》呼籲建立更強大的情報、預警和監視網絡，以防衛日本的海域和空域。

Citing Chinese “intrusions” into areas around the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands, known in China as the Diaoyu, it urges the acceleration of an ongoing shift of defence resources to the sea to the southwest of the main Japanese islands.

《大綱》以中國方面“侵入”日方管轄的尖閣諸島(Senkaku Islands)——中國稱釣魚島及其附屬島嶼——周圍海域爲由，敦促加快將防衛資源部署到日本的西南諸島。

Japan’s public has been largely accepting of the so-far mild build-up of military power under Mr Abe, which has included a small but rare increase in the national defence budget.

日本公衆基本上認可安倍領導的迄今還算溫和的軍力擴張。安倍政府小幅增加了國防預算，此舉在日本是相當少見的。

Some of Mr Abe’s proposals have gone too far for the public’s liking, however. He has shelved, at least for now, his ambition to rewrite Japan’s anti-war constitution, and a controversial official secrets law linked to the creation of the new security council has been wildly unpopular.

不過，安倍的某些提議大大超出了公衆願意接受的範圍。安倍已經擱置了重寫日本反戰憲法的雄心，至少就目前而言是如此。與此同時，與組建國家安全保障會議相關的有爭議的《特定祕密保護法》也很不得人心。

Although Mr Abe successfully pushed the law through parliament last week, 82 per cent of respondents to a Kyodo News opinion survey said they wanted it revised.

儘管安倍上週成功推動國會通過該法，但在共同社(Kyodo News)的一項民意調查中，82%的受訪者稱希望該法得到修訂。