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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
拜登在压力之下平息紧张局势
US vice-president faces difficult task of pacifying1 Tokyo while openly communicating with Beijing
US Vice-President Joe Biden arrived in Tokyo late on Monday for the first leg of a tour of East Asia that will later take him to China and South Korea.
Biden's visit comes amid mounting tensions between China and Japan over territorial2 claims and China's announcement last month of its East China Sea Air Defense3 Identification Zone.
Biden is walking a diplomatic tightrope4, according to observers, with various parties calling on him to support their stances, while others look to the US to calm tensions.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Sunday that he would discuss China's air defense identification zone with Biden on Tuesday to coordinate5 their stances.
"We want to hold consultation6 and deal with the matter by coordinating7 closely between Japan and the United States," Abe said.
One day before Biden's arrival, the US Navy's first advanced P-8 patrol aircraft arrived in Japan, starting a deployment8 that will upgrade Washington's ability to hunt submarines and other vessels9 in seas close to China, Reuters reported.
White House officials have emphasized that the visit is part of a continuum of US engagement in the Asia-Pacific region.
"The trip will underscore the Obama administration's strong commitment to the rebalance and to our enduring role as a Pacific power," a senior administration official said last week.
"It is an opportunity to give lift to our treaty alliances and to advance our very important relationship with China," the official said of Biden's trip.
Observers said that pacifying Tokyo and communicating with Beijing might be Biden's main task, but it will be difficult for him to achieve an arrangement that is satisfactory for all parties.
Stapleton Roy, a scholar at the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States at the Wilson Center, said that the US and China share a major responsibility to act wisely and responsibly in dealing10 with regional sources of tension.
"Neither of the two countries should let the passions of the moment drive their behaviors," said Roy, who was also the US ambassador to China in the early 1990s.
Leadership role
However, Zha Daojiong, a professor of international relations at Peking University, said Washington appears to be increasingly taking a leadership role in the diplomatic impasses11 among Tokyo, Beijing and Seoul — a role that many in Washington would rather not take on.
"The truth of the matter is that the expectations of the three northeast Asian capitals for 'reassuring12' words and actions from Washington DC could easily put the US desire to satisfy everyone under strain," Zha said.
"As such, realistically, the Biden trip can and should function as one that personifies the usual US call for restraint on the part of each of the three Northeast Asian capitals, rejecting conflict, which no party desires," he added.
Since China announced its air defense identification zone on Nov 23, Washington has repeatedly voiced its rejection13 of the zone, even flying two B-52 bombers14 to show defiance15, although the Pentagon said the flights were part of long-planned military drills.
Tokyo and Seoul also refused to recognize the zone, which overlaps16 with Japan's ADIZ over China's Diaoyu Islands in the area, and both have flown planes over China's zone without reporting to the Chinese authorities ahead of time. In return, China said it has dispatched air force jets to monitor these aircraft.
Wu Xinbo, director of the Institute of American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai, said that Beijing's air defense identification zone covers an area that features the most frequent US military activities in the region, and thus has infringed17 on the so-called "US strategic interest".
"It definitely impacts the low-altitude US reconnaissance against China and its joint18 exercises with allies. The bombers were dispatched to the zone only as a demonstration19 of Washington's tough posture," Wu said.
China has also asked aircraft to submit flight plans when traversing the area.
In defiance, Tokyo has ordered Japanese airlines not to submit flight plans to Beijing, but Washington said on Friday that it generally expected US carriers to "operate consistent with" notification policies issued by foreign countries.
Foreign Ministry20 Spokesman Hong Lei expressed on Monday his appreciation21 for the constructive22 attitude of several airlines that have reported flight information to Chinese authority. He also urged Japan to stop making groundless accusations23 and take joint responsibility with China in safeguarding aviation control in the airspace.
"The fact that Tokyo has deliberately24 politicized the matter is not conducive25 to bilateral26 cooperation in civil aviation," Hong said.
Contact the writers at [email protected] and [email protected]
Pu Zhendong in Beijing and Reuters contributed to this story.
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pacifying
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使(某人)安静( pacify的现在分词 ); 息怒; 抚慰; 在(有战争的地区、国家等)实现和平 | |
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2
territorial
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adj.领土的,领地的 | |
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3
defense
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n.防御,保卫;[pl.]防务工事;辩护,答辩 | |
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4
tightrope
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n.绷紧的绳索或钢丝 | |
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5
coordinate
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adj.同等的,协调的;n.同等者;vt.协作,协调 | |
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consultation
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n.咨询;商量;商议;会议 | |
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coordinating
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v.使协调,使调和( coordinate的现在分词 );协调;协同;成为同等 | |
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8
deployment
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n. 部署,展开 | |
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vessels
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n.血管( vessel的名词复数 );船;容器;(具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的)人 | |
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10
dealing
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n.经商方法,待人态度 | |
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impasses
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绝境(impasse的复数形式) | |
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12
reassuring
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a.使人消除恐惧和疑虑的,使人放心的 | |
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13
rejection
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n.拒绝,被拒,抛弃,被弃 | |
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14
bombers
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n.轰炸机( bomber的名词复数 );投弹手;安非他明胶囊;大麻叶香烟 | |
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15
defiance
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n.挑战,挑衅,蔑视,违抗 | |
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overlaps
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v.部分重叠( overlap的第三人称单数 );(物体)部份重叠;交叠;(时间上)部份重叠 | |
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infringed
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v.违反(规章等)( infringe的过去式和过去分词 );侵犯(某人的权利);侵害(某人的自由、权益等) | |
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joint
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adj.联合的,共同的;n.关节,接合处;v.连接,贴合 | |
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demonstration
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n.表明,示范,论证,示威 | |
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ministry
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n.(政府的)部;牧师 | |
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appreciation
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n.评价;欣赏;感谢;领会,理解;价格上涨 | |
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22
constructive
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adj.建设的,建设性的 | |
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23
accusations
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n.指责( accusation的名词复数 );指控;控告;(被告发、控告的)罪名 | |
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24
deliberately
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adv.审慎地;蓄意地;故意地 | |
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25
conducive
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adj.有益的,有助的 | |
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bilateral
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adj.双方的,两边的,两侧的 | |
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