日本加大力度與韓國爭奪爭議島嶼

Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda turned up the heat on South Korea over a territorial dispute Tuesday, deciding to take the issue to an international tribunal and telling his cabinet ministers to come up with other options the government can take against Seoul.

日本首相野田佳彥(Yoshihiko Noda)週二加大了爭奪日韓爭議領土的行動力度，他決定把這個問題提交給國際法庭，並籲請內閣成員拿出政府可以運用的應對首爾的其它辦法。

Coming on the heels of sharp criticism of his handling of a separate territorial row with China, Mr. Noda said Japan needs to take firm measures in response to a recent visit by South Korean President Lee Myung-bak to contested islands which lie between the two countries. The Korea-controlled islands are referred to as Dokdo by South Korea and Takeshima by Japan. They are also known as the Liancourt Rocks.

因處理中日領土爭端問題受到國內尖銳批評後，野田佳彥說，日本應採取強硬措施應對前不久韓國總統李明博(Lee Myung-bak)登上日韓之間某爭議島嶼一事。該島爲韓國所控制，在韓國叫做“獨島”(Dokdo)，日本叫“竹島”(Takeshima)，在其它國家被稱作利揚庫爾巖(Liancourt Rocks)。

'Takeshima has been our territory historically and also under international law,' Mr. Noda told a special meeting of cabinet ministers. 'We need to look into every possible measure we can take in the future.'

野田佳彥在內閣成員的一次特別會議上說，不管是從歷史還是從國際法的角度來說，竹島歷來都是日本領土，我們應仔細研究未來可能採用的每個可能方案。

But Seoul said it wouldn't consider Tokyo's proposal to have the International Court of Justice look into the dispute. Seoul insists it has always had sovereignty over them.

但首爾說，不會考慮東京讓海牙國際法庭(International Court of Justice)對此事進行仲裁的提議。首爾堅持認爲，韓國一直擁有該島主權。

A South Korean Foreign Ministry spokesman on Tuesday referred to a Friday statement that rejected Japan's move, floated already last week.

韓國外交部發言人週二提到了上週五韓國發表的一則聲明，聲明對日本上週提議將島嶼之爭提交國際法庭的做法表示拒絕。

'Dokdo is clearly Korean territory by history, geography and international law, and a territorial dispute does not exist. It should be made clear that the Japanese government's suggestion or plan to take Dokdo to the ICJ is not worth consideration,' the Aug. 17 statement said.

8月17日的聲明說，無論從歷史、地理還是國際法的角度，獨島顯然都是韓國領土，並不存在領土爭議；有一點應當明確，韓國絕不會考慮日本政府建議或計劃將獨島問題提交海牙國際法庭的做法。

ICJ arbitration can't go ahead without agreement from both parties, so even if Japan files suit on its own, further proceedings are unlikely. Instead, analysts say Tokyo's real aim is to prevent further action by South Korea by drawing global attention to the issue.

如果爭議雙方沒有就是否進行仲裁達成一致，海牙國際法庭就不能進行仲裁，所以即使日本提起訴訟，也不太可能進入下一步法律程序。分析人士說，東京此舉的真實目的是要吸引全球對此事的關注，從而阻止韓國採取進一步舉動。

In addition to taking the case to the ICJ, Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura told reporters that some Japanese cabinet ministers─including the trade and economy ministers─would put off meetings with their South Korean counterparts.

日本內閣官房長官藤村修(Osamu Fujimura)告訴記者，除了將領土爭議提交海牙國際法庭外，包括日本貿易和經濟官員在內的一些內閣大臣將推遲與韓國官員的會議。

Reflecting how emotional ties between the Asian neighbors can be, one of Japan's most popular politicians touched on the controversial issue of so-called Korean 'comfort women,' thought to have served as sexual slaves for the Japanese military during World War II.

日本最受歡迎的政治人物之一談論了所謂的韓國“慰安婦”這一飽受爭議的話題，這反映出這兩個亞洲鄰國的關係可以多麼情緒化。韓國慰安婦被認爲是二戰期間被強迫爲日軍提供性服務的韓國女性。

Osaka Mayor Toru Hashimoto, who has topped some polls as the most popular choice for the next prime minister, challenged the South Korean government to provide proof that the women were forcibly taken by the Japanese military through 'violence or intimidation.'

大阪市市長橋下徹(Toru Hashimoto)要求韓國政府提供證據，證明這些婦女是日本軍隊通過暴力恐嚇強行徵召的。多次民調顯示橋下徹是下一任日本首相的熱門人選。

Mr. Hashimoto's views echo those of some nationalists who say the women served by their own choice and were paid to do so. The Korean government has severely criticized similar comments by Japanese politicians in the past.

橋下徹的觀點反映了一些民族主義者的看法，即韓國慰安婦是自願並且有償爲日本軍人服務的。韓國政府過去曾嚴厲譴責日本政治人物的類似說法。

The Japanese government has acknowledged the military's involvement and apologized for the women's suffering.

日本政府已經承認日本軍隊曾參與其中，併爲韓國慰安婦遭受的苦難道了歉。

In an apparent bid to keep some channels open to mend fences in the future, officials from Japan, China and South Korea met Tuesday in the Chinese city of Qingdao for talks on a trilateral free-trade agreement.

週二，日本、中國和韓國的官員在中國城市青島就三邊自由貿易協定進行了討論，此舉顯然是爲了保持一些渠道的開放，以在未來修補受損的關係。

Separately, Finance Minister Jun Azumi said he hadn't decided whether to extend the expansion of a currency-swap agreement with South Korea.

另一方面，日本財務大臣安住淳(Jun Azumi)說，他尚未決定是否延長擴大日韓貨幣互換協議規模的措施。

Last week, he suggested the ministry may roll back the swap deal─an agreement to temporarily lend each other dollars─to $13 billion at the end of October from $70 billion now. The two nations agreed last October to increase the swap line after South Korea expressed concern of potential capital outflows resulting from the European debt crisis, Japanese officials said.

安住淳上週曾表示，日本財務省可能會在10月底將貨幣互換規模從700億美元恢復到原來的130億美元。簽署貨幣互換協議是爲了彼此臨借美元。日本官員說，在韓國表示擔心歐債危機可能導致資本外流之後，日韓兩國於去年10月達成擴大貨幣互換規模的協議。