建立中美军队互信——马伦7月26日在《纽约时报》发表署 ...

文章链接

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/26/opinion/26Mullen.html



A Step Toward Trust With China
向中美互信迈出的一步

THE military relationship between the United States and China is one of the world’s most important. And yet, clouded by some misunderstanding and suspicion, it remains among the most challenging. There are issues on which we disagree and are tempted to confront each other. But there are crucial areas where our interests coincide, on which we must work together.

中美两军关系是当今世界上最为重要的双边关系之一，然而，在猜忌与误解的阴影下，这层关系也是最富挑战性的（老美讲某事棘手经常用挑战性一词）。在一些问题上我们意见相左，且倾向于相互对抗。但在一些关键领域，我们利益一致，必须相互配合。

So we need to make the relationship better, by seeking strategic trust.

因此，我们必须通过寻求战略互信来改善两军关系。

How do we do that?

如何为之?

First, we’ve got to keep talking. Dialogue is critical.

首先，我们必须保持对话。沟通非常关键。

A good bit of misunderstanding between our militaries can be cleared up by reaching out to each other. We don’t have to give away secrets to make our intentions clear, just open up a little.

中美军队间相当一部分的误解可以通过对话消除。美军不必通过泄密来澄清其意图，稍微开放一点即可。

That’s why I invited my counterpart in the People’s Liberation Army, Gen. Chen Bingde, to the United States in May, and it’s why he was my host in China two weeks ago. We broke new ground by, among other things, showing him Predator drone capabilities in detail and a live-fire exercise; the Chinese reciprocated with a tour of their latest submarine, a close look at an SU-27 jet fighter and a complex counterterrorism exercise.

这就是为什么我在五月份邀请陈将军访美和我在两星期前访华。我们在互访中有所突破，比如我们向陈将军详细展示了捕食者无人机和一次实弹演习；中方则邀请我们参观了他们最新的潜艇、苏27战机以及综合反恐训练。
 
Our discussions were candid and forthright. General Chen made no bones about his concerns about American arms sales to Taiwan, and I made it clear that the United States military will not shrink from our responsibilities to allies and partners. He said the P.L.A.’s strategic intentions were purely defensive; I said that neither the skills they were perfecting nor their investments seemed to support that argument.

我们的对话是坦率的。陈将军对美向台出售武器明确表示关切，而我强调美国会对盟友负责。陈表示中方战略意图完全是防御性的，我指出中国军队追求的技术和他们的投资都不仅仅着眼于防御。

Not exactly cordial, but at least we were talking.

虽然不是十分热忱，但至少我们保持对话。

Second, we need to focus on the things we have in common.

其次，我们必须着眼于两军的共同点。

We’re both maritime nations with long coastlines and economies dependent on unhindered trade. We both face threats of drug trafficking, piracy and the movement of weapons of mass destruction. We both want stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Pakistan. We both recognize the need for coordinated international humanitarian aid and disaster relief.

我们都是拥有绵延岸线的海洋国家，经济又都依赖畅通无阻贸易。（老美借机强调南海通行权啊）我们共同面对贩毒、海盗、大规模杀伤性武器扩散的威胁。我们均希望朝鲜半岛和巴基斯坦稳定。我们还意识到配合进行国际人道主义援助和救灾的重要性。

These are challenges we can tackle together, and missions we can plan and train for, and perhaps someday execute side by side. Our staffs signed a few initiatives in that regard, including a commitment to conduct joint counter-piracy exercises in the Gulf of Aden this year.

这些挑战我们可以共同应对，这些任务（指援助、救灾等）我们可以共同筹划、训练甚至将来有一天共同实施。我们在这方面签订了一系列协议，其中包括今年在亚丁湾举行中美联合反海盗演习。

Good steps all, but there is a long way to go.

虽然有所进展，但前方路漫漫。

We still don’t see eye-to-eye with China over military operating rights in the South China Sea. We still don’t fully understand China’s justification for the rapid growth in its defense spending or its long-term military modernization goals. And we don’t believe that China should be allowed to resolve disputes in contested waters by coercing smaller nations. Instead, as Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has made clear, we advocate a collaborative diplomatic process among all parties to resolve disputes under international law. And we need better mechanisms to deal with inevitable tensions.

我们在南海军事行动权利上仍不能和中国达成一致。
我们仍不能完全理解中国快速增加军费投入的理由，以及其军事现代化的长期目标。
同时我们不应该放任中国在争议海域问题上恃强凌弱。正如国务卿希拉里指出，我们倡导在国际法框架下通过多边外交合作解决争端。
此外，我们需要更好的机制来应对无法回避的紧张局面。

That said, these sticking points aren’t all bad. It’s all right to disagree sometimes, to have substantial differences.

但是，这些棘手的问题也不是一团糟，存在分歧是正常的。

In fact, sometimes bluntness and honesty are exactly what’s needed to create strategic trust. And we will need more of it. Our military relations have only recently begun to thaw, but China’s government still uses them as a sort of thermostat to communicate displeasure. When they don’t like something we do, they cut off ties. That can’t be the model anymore. Nor can we, for our part, swing between engagement and over-reaction. That’s why the commitment by President Obama and President Hu Jintao to improve military-to-military relations is so important. Real trust has to start somewhere. And it shouldn’t be subject to shifting political winds.

事实上，有时候开诚布公就是建立战略互信的关键。中美两军关系最近才开始解冻，但中国政府仍将其视为某种表达不满的晴雨表。当北京对我们的行动不爽时，他们就切断军事交流，这不能再成为两军交往的模式。而我们自己也不能在接触与过激反应之间来回摆动。这是为什么观海和Hu核关于增进两军关系的承诺如此重要。真正的信任必须有一个出发点，而且不能受政坛风云的干扰。

So, General Chen and I are considering more frequent discussions, more exercises, more personnel exchanges. We both believe that the younger generation of military officers is ready for closer contact, and that upon their shoulders rests the best hope for deeper, more meaningful trust.

因此，陈将军和我正在考虑更多的对话、演习和人员交流。我们都相信年轻一代的军官们已做好了深入交往的准备，他们肩负着在两军之间建立更深层次的、更具意义的互相信任的希望。（为什么感觉象两家老人在谈论小辈的婚事，当真是基情四射啊）

I’m not naïve. I understand the concerns of those who feel that any cooperation benefits China more than the United States. I just don’t agree. This relationship is too important to manage through blind suspicion and mistrust. We’ve tried that. It doesn’t work.

当然，我并不天真。我理解有人担心中国在两军交流中获利比美国多，但我不这样认为。两军关系如此重要，不能靠盲目猜疑来经营。我们已经试过，不起效。

I’m not suggesting we look the other way on serious issues, that we abandon healthy skepticism, or that we change our military’s focus on the region. But we need to keep communication open and work hard to improve each interaction.

在此，我并不主张对严重问题视而不见，或放松警惕，或改变在西太平洋地区的策略。但我们必须保持沟通、增进互动。

We can shrink from this opportunity, or rise to it. We can let narrow interests and suspicion define our relationship, or work toward more transparency, more pragmatic expectations of each other, and more focus on our common challenges. That would be a great start toward strategic trust.

我们可以回避这一机遇或直面它。（当兵的用词没得说，直译过来就是在机遇面前我们或萎或起，很合大家的口味）
我们可以让狭隘的利益和猜忌塑造两军关系，或者，可以共同致力于打造更多的透明度和更实用的相互预期，同时更多地关注于共同面对的挑战。

Mike Mullen, a Navy admiral, is the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

美国海军上将，参谋长联席会议主席迈克·马伦。文章链接

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/26/opinion/26Mullen.html



A Step Toward Trust With China
向中美互信迈出的一步

THE military relationship between the United States and China is one of the world’s most important. And yet, clouded by some misunderstanding and suspicion, it remains among the most challenging. There are issues on which we disagree and are tempted to confront each other. But there are crucial areas where our interests coincide, on which we must work together.

中美两军关系是当今世界上最为重要的双边关系之一，然而，在猜忌与误解的阴影下，这层关系也是最富挑战性的（老美讲某事棘手经常用挑战性一词）。在一些问题上我们意见相左，且倾向于相互对抗。但在一些关键领域，我们利益一致，必须相互配合。

So we need to make the relationship better, by seeking strategic trust.

因此，我们必须通过寻求战略互信来改善两军关系。

How do we do that?

如何为之?

First, we’ve got to keep talking. Dialogue is critical.

首先，我们必须保持对话。沟通非常关键。

A good bit of misunderstanding between our militaries can be cleared up by reaching out to each other. We don’t have to give away secrets to make our intentions clear, just open up a little.

中美军队间相当一部分的误解可以通过对话消除。美军不必通过泄密来澄清其意图，稍微开放一点即可。

That’s why I invited my counterpart in the People’s Liberation Army, Gen. Chen Bingde, to the United States in May, and it’s why he was my host in China two weeks ago. We broke new ground by, among other things, showing him Predator drone capabilities in detail and a live-fire exercise; the Chinese reciprocated with a tour of their latest submarine, a close look at an SU-27 jet fighter and a complex counterterrorism exercise.

这就是为什么我在五月份邀请陈将军访美和我在两星期前访华。我们在互访中有所突破，比如我们向陈将军详细展示了捕食者无人机和一次实弹演习；中方则邀请我们参观了他们最新的潜艇、苏27战机以及综合反恐训练。
 
Our discussions were candid and forthright. General Chen made no bones about his concerns about American arms sales to Taiwan, and I made it clear that the United States military will not shrink from our responsibilities to allies and partners. He said the P.L.A.’s strategic intentions were purely defensive; I said that neither the skills they were perfecting nor their investments seemed to support that argument.

我们的对话是坦率的。陈将军对美向台出售武器明确表示关切，而我强调美国会对盟友负责。陈表示中方战略意图完全是防御性的，我指出中国军队追求的技术和他们的投资都不仅仅着眼于防御。

Not exactly cordial, but at least we were talking.

虽然不是十分热忱，但至少我们保持对话。

Second, we need to focus on the things we have in common.

其次，我们必须着眼于两军的共同点。

We’re both maritime nations with long coastlines and economies dependent on unhindered trade. We both face threats of drug trafficking, piracy and the movement of weapons of mass destruction. We both want stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Pakistan. We both recognize the need for coordinated international humanitarian aid and disaster relief.

我们都是拥有绵延岸线的海洋国家，经济又都依赖畅通无阻贸易。（老美借机强调南海通行权啊）我们共同面对贩毒、海盗、大规模杀伤性武器扩散的威胁。我们均希望朝鲜半岛和巴基斯坦稳定。我们还意识到配合进行国际人道主义援助和救灾的重要性。

These are challenges we can tackle together, and missions we can plan and train for, and perhaps someday execute side by side. Our staffs signed a few initiatives in that regard, including a commitment to conduct joint counter-piracy exercises in the Gulf of Aden this year.

这些挑战我们可以共同应对，这些任务（指援助、救灾等）我们可以共同筹划、训练甚至将来有一天共同实施。我们在这方面签订了一系列协议，其中包括今年在亚丁湾举行中美联合反海盗演习。

Good steps all, but there is a long way to go.

虽然有所进展，但前方路漫漫。

We still don’t see eye-to-eye with China over military operating rights in the South China Sea. We still don’t fully understand China’s justification for the rapid growth in its defense spending or its long-term military modernization goals. And we don’t believe that China should be allowed to resolve disputes in contested waters by coercing smaller nations. Instead, as Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has made clear, we advocate a collaborative diplomatic process among all parties to resolve disputes under international law. And we need better mechanisms to deal with inevitable tensions.

我们在南海军事行动权利上仍不能和中国达成一致。
我们仍不能完全理解中国快速增加军费投入的理由，以及其军事现代化的长期目标。
同时我们不应该放任中国在争议海域问题上恃强凌弱。正如国务卿希拉里指出，我们倡导在国际法框架下通过多边外交合作解决争端。
此外，我们需要更好的机制来应对无法回避的紧张局面。

That said, these sticking points aren’t all bad. It’s all right to disagree sometimes, to have substantial differences.

但是，这些棘手的问题也不是一团糟，存在分歧是正常的。

In fact, sometimes bluntness and honesty are exactly what’s needed to create strategic trust. And we will need more of it. Our military relations have only recently begun to thaw, but China’s government still uses them as a sort of thermostat to communicate displeasure. When they don’t like something we do, they cut off ties. That can’t be the model anymore. Nor can we, for our part, swing between engagement and over-reaction. That’s why the commitment by President Obama and President Hu Jintao to improve military-to-military relations is so important. Real trust has to start somewhere. And it shouldn’t be subject to shifting political winds.

事实上，有时候开诚布公就是建立战略互信的关键。中美两军关系最近才开始解冻，但中国政府仍将其视为某种表达不满的晴雨表。当北京对我们的行动不爽时，他们就切断军事交流，这不能再成为两军交往的模式。而我们自己也不能在接触与过激反应之间来回摆动。这是为什么观海和Hu核关于增进两军关系的承诺如此重要。真正的信任必须有一个出发点，而且不能受政坛风云的干扰。

So, General Chen and I are considering more frequent discussions, more exercises, more personnel exchanges. We both believe that the younger generation of military officers is ready for closer contact, and that upon their shoulders rests the best hope for deeper, more meaningful trust.

因此，陈将军和我正在考虑更多的对话、演习和人员交流。我们都相信年轻一代的军官们已做好了深入交往的准备，他们肩负着在两军之间建立更深层次的、更具意义的互相信任的希望。（为什么感觉象两家老人在谈论小辈的婚事，当真是基情四射啊）

I’m not naïve. I understand the concerns of those who feel that any cooperation benefits China more than the United States. I just don’t agree. This relationship is too important to manage through blind suspicion and mistrust. We’ve tried that. It doesn’t work.

当然，我并不天真。我理解有人担心中国在两军交流中获利比美国多，但我不这样认为。两军关系如此重要，不能靠盲目猜疑来经营。我们已经试过，不起效。

I’m not suggesting we look the other way on serious issues, that we abandon healthy skepticism, or that we change our military’s focus on the region. But we need to keep communication open and work hard to improve each interaction.

在此，我并不主张对严重问题视而不见，或放松警惕，或改变在西太平洋地区的策略。但我们必须保持沟通、增进互动。

We can shrink from this opportunity, or rise to it. We can let narrow interests and suspicion define our relationship, or work toward more transparency, more pragmatic expectations of each other, and more focus on our common challenges. That would be a great start toward strategic trust.

我们可以回避这一机遇或直面它。（当兵的用词没得说，直译过来就是在机遇面前我们或萎或起，很合大家的口味）
我们可以让狭隘的利益和猜忌塑造两军关系，或者，可以共同致力于打造更多的透明度和更实用的相互预期，同时更多地关注于共同面对的挑战。

Mike Mullen, a Navy admiral, is the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

美国海军上将，参谋长联席会议主席迈克·马伦。