日
本拘押中国渔船船长迅速升级成为多年来最糟糕的一次中日争端，这对日本新的执政党处理其与力量日益强大的邻国关系的能力是一次考验。
Associated Press
回顾中日宿怨
中国商务部周四否认了《纽约时报》（New York Times）一篇关于中国停止对日出口稀土元素的报道。中日两国的一些业内管理人士及政府官员说他们未看到有相关禁令的迹象。
刚刚上台三个月的日本首相菅直人（Naoto Kan）政府对该争端事件的反应让很多外交政策专家感到意外。他领导的日本民主党（Democratic Party of Japan）主张加强与中国的联系，其领导人也未追随前任，未参拜有争议的供奉战犯的神社，这向来是中日两国激烈争论的一个话题。然而，日本政府此次对中国冷静但强硬的态度与之前的表现截然不同，日本在以往的领土争端中往往提前做出妥协，以避免冲突升级。
美国外交关系协会（Council on Foreign Relations）日本研究高级研究员史密斯（Sheila Smith）说，很明显的一点就是，日本说，不，我们不想再忍气吞声。日本转变了态度，并且是在政治变动、很多人怀疑政府能否有效发挥作用之际。
Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
图为一名抗议者站在北京的日本大使馆外，他手中拿着的标语上写着要求日本无条件释放被扣押的中国渔船船长。
此次似乎是日本对进入该海域的中国人时间最长的一次拘押。
日本智库东京基金会（Tokyo Foundation）高级研究员Tsuneo Watanabe说，日本过去没有处理好这些事件，这次，日本必须要得到一个法律上的结果，并耐心的对中国解释说我们并没有政治目的，希望得到他们的理解。
日本官员说他们的回应并未比之前更强硬，相反，中国的表现倒变得更咄咄逼人。他们说他们追踪到中国海事活动在日本海域内或附近不断增加，使日本感到恐慌，包括10艘海军船舰组成的舰队在冲绳的两个主要岛屿的公海海域经过，同时一架中国直升机曾接近一艘日本驱逐舰。
据日本官员说，近几个月，中国渔船在争议海域附近活动越来越频繁，八月份最多达到了每天250艘。
日本官员说，9月7日发生撞船事件之前，日本海上保安厅曾提醒中国渔船离开，后者也都遵从了日本的提醒。另外，日本也低调、但多次向北京提出交涉，以防范碰撞风险为由要求北京管好自己的渔船。
9月7日的撞船事故是第一例此类性质的相撞事件，日本官员称之为“孤立”事件。中国渔船与两艘日本海岸护卫队巡逻船在日本自认是本国领土的区域附近相撞。日本称，日方先向中国渔船发出警告，让其离开日本自认是其领土的区域，随后中国渔船恶意冲撞了日本舰船。在以涉嫌妨碍公务为由抓捕了中国渔船船长后，日本方面表示，要遵照日本国内法处理此案。
中国说，是日本舰船追逐中国渔船才导致相撞，并将问题的焦点放到日本在中国领土内“非法拦截”中国渔船。这片争议地区有着丰富的天然气蕴藏量。
日本一位政府官员说，我们以前就祈祷不要发生撞船事件，因为我们知道撞船会引发什么后果，不过这个程序是我们不可避免的。
9月19日，日本检方决定延押中国船长，并需要于9月29日决定是否对中国船长进行起诉。
有人说，日方有可能会起诉中国船长，因为日本握有撞船录像带，不过这盘录像带从未公开，日本希望在起诉中国船长时将其作为证据更好地加以利用。
虽然妨碍公务并不是一项需要坐牢的严重罪名，但是起诉可能意味着中国船长不得不在日本停留数周甚至是数月，接受法院审理程序。那样一来，很有可能使中日双方的对峙进一步升级。
日本可能会主动寻求解决办法。中国国务院总理温家宝周三敦促日本“立即无条件”释放中国船长后，日本内阁官房长官仙谷由人(Yoshito Sengoku)说，两国最好尽快举行高层会谈。
美国周四敦促日本和中国立即解决两国争端。
美国国务院发言人克劳利(P.J. Crowley)说，我们感觉中日任何一方都不愿看到事态发展到对亚洲地区产生长期影响的地步。
克劳利说，美国国务卿克林顿(Hillary Clinton)对日本新任外相前原诚司(Seiji Maehara)讲，中国和日本的良好关系对亚洲繁荣起着至关重要的作用。
Yuka Hayashi
（本文版权归道琼斯公司所有，未经许可不得翻译或转载。）
A confrontation over a Chinese sea captain's arrest that has quickly escalated into the worst Tokyo-Beijing dispute in years is testing the ability of Japan's new ruling party to manage relations with its increasingly powerful neighbor.
After detaining the captain of a Chinese fishing trawler that collided with Japanese coast guard vessels in disputed waters in the East China Sea, Tokyo has repeatedly rejected Beijing's demand for his return. That has set off a series of retaliatory steps from China, including the rejection of a bilateral summit meeting and the cancellation of cultural-exchange programs. On Thursday, a senior Chinese official said at a regional tourism conference held in Japan that Tokyo was solely responsible for a 'very serious problem' between the two nations. He then warned of more repercussions on Chinese tourism in Japan, unless Tokyo takes decisive steps.
China's Commerce Ministry Thursday denied a New York Times report that China had halted exports of rare-earth elements to Japan. Several industry executives and government officials in Japan and China said they had seen no evidence of such a ban.
The response from Prime Minister Naoto Kan's three-month-old government to the dispute has surprised many foreign-policy experts. His Democratic Party of Japan emphasizes closer ties to China, while its leaders, unlike their predecessors, have not visited a controversial shrine devoted to the war dead, a source of bitter arguments between the two nations in the past. Still, the government's calm but stern reaction to China this time has set itself apart from Tokyo's past behavior during territorial skirmishes, where it has tended to make compromises early on to avoid full-fledged confrontation.
'One thing that is very clear is Japan said, 'No, we are not going to put up with it,'' said Sheila Smith, senior fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, a U.S. think tank. 'Japan drew a red line and drew it at a moment of political change, when many people were wondering whether or not the government was fully functioning.'
There have been occasional flare-ups of tension over the disputed islands since the early 1970s when the U.S. ended the occupation of Okinawa, which, by the Japanese definition, includes the islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in Chinese. But the tension has rarely risen this high. There have been a number of skirmishes, usually involving Chinese or Taiwanese ships entering the disputed areas and the Japanese ships chasing them off. On one occasion in 2004, Japan arrested seven Chinese activists after they landed on the chain's main island. They were released a few days later as their offense was deemed a violation of immigration law, which usually results in simple deportation.
This appears to be the longest detention by Japan for a Chinese national entering the territory.
'In the past, Japan hasn't dealt with these cases properly,' said Tsuneo Watanabe, senior fellow at the Tokyo Foundation, a think tank. 'This time, Japan must reach a legal conclusion while explaining patiently to China that we don't have political motives and try to gain their understanding.'
Japanese officials say their response isn't more forceful than in the past, but rather, that Chinese behavior has turned more aggressive. They say they have tracked increased Chinese naval activities near or in the Japanese waters that alarmed the Japanese, including the passing of a flotilla of 10 naval vessels in the high seas between two main islands of Okinawa, that came with a provocative action of a Chinese helicopter coming in close proximity to a Japanese destroyer.
In recent months, the number of Chinese trawlers operating near the disputed areas has risen gradually, according to Japanese officials, reaching as many as 250 a day in August.
Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.Until the collision on Sept. 7, the Japanese coast guard had warned the trawlers to leave, and they obliged, said Japanese officials. Japan has also quietly, but repeatedly, launched complaints with Beijing to keep control of these vessels, citing the risks of collisions.
The Sept. 7 crash was the first such collision -- and Japanese officials call it an 'isolated' incident. The crash between the trawler and two Japanese coast guard patrol vessels took place near the area that Japan considers its territory. Japan maintains that the Chinese boat maliciously rammed its ships after being warned to leave what Japan considered its territory. Having arrested its captain for alleged obstruction of official duties, Japan says it is handling his case according to its domestic law.
China says the Japanese ships' chasing of the trawler led to the collision and has focused on Japan's 'illegal interception' of the Chinese vessel in its territory, known for its rich deposits of natural gas.
'We were praying this could be avoided,' said a Japanese government official. 'We knew what this would entail but it was a process that we couldn't avoid.'
Having extended the captain's detention period on Sept. 19, Japanese prosecutors are required to decide whether or not to indict him by Sept. 29.
Some say an indictment is likely, given that Japan has a video of the collision -- which Japan hasn't made public in order to be better able to use it as evidence in case of indictment.
While obstruction of official duties isn't considered a serious offense that requires imprisonment, an indictment would mean weeks and possibly months of keeping the captain in Japan for court proceedings. That would likely escalate the confrontation further.
Japan may be moving to seek a solution. After Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao urged Japan on Wednesday to 'immediately and unconditionally' release the captain, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said: 'It is desirable if we could hold a high-level meeting as early as possible.'
The U.S. on Thursday urged Japan and China to quickly resolve the dispute.
'Our sense is that neither side wants to see the situation escalate to the point that it has long-term regional impact,' State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said.
Mr. Crowley said that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told new Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara that good ties between China and Japan are crucial to Asia's prosperity.
Yuka Hayashi
After detaining the captain of a Chinese fishing trawler that collided with Japanese coast guard vessels in disputed waters in the East China Sea, Tokyo has repeatedly rejected Beijing's demand for his return. That has set off a series of retaliatory steps from China, including the rejection of a bilateral summit meeting and the cancellation of cultural-exchange programs. On Thursday, a senior Chinese official said at a regional tourism conference held in Japan that Tokyo was solely responsible for a 'very serious problem' between the two nations. He then warned of more repercussions on Chinese tourism in Japan, unless Tokyo takes decisive steps.
China's Commerce Ministry Thursday denied a New York Times report that China had halted exports of rare-earth elements to Japan. Several industry executives and government officials in Japan and China said they had seen no evidence of such a ban.
The response from Prime Minister Naoto Kan's three-month-old government to the dispute has surprised many foreign-policy experts. His Democratic Party of Japan emphasizes closer ties to China, while its leaders, unlike their predecessors, have not visited a controversial shrine devoted to the war dead, a source of bitter arguments between the two nations in the past. Still, the government's calm but stern reaction to China this time has set itself apart from Tokyo's past behavior during territorial skirmishes, where it has tended to make compromises early on to avoid full-fledged confrontation.
'One thing that is very clear is Japan said, 'No, we are not going to put up with it,'' said Sheila Smith, senior fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, a U.S. think tank. 'Japan drew a red line and drew it at a moment of political change, when many people were wondering whether or not the government was fully functioning.'
There have been occasional flare-ups of tension over the disputed islands since the early 1970s when the U.S. ended the occupation of Okinawa, which, by the Japanese definition, includes the islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in Chinese. But the tension has rarely risen this high. There have been a number of skirmishes, usually involving Chinese or Taiwanese ships entering the disputed areas and the Japanese ships chasing them off. On one occasion in 2004, Japan arrested seven Chinese activists after they landed on the chain's main island. They were released a few days later as their offense was deemed a violation of immigration law, which usually results in simple deportation.
This appears to be the longest detention by Japan for a Chinese national entering the territory.
'In the past, Japan hasn't dealt with these cases properly,' said Tsuneo Watanabe, senior fellow at the Tokyo Foundation, a think tank. 'This time, Japan must reach a legal conclusion while explaining patiently to China that we don't have political motives and try to gain their understanding.'
Japanese officials say their response isn't more forceful than in the past, but rather, that Chinese behavior has turned more aggressive. They say they have tracked increased Chinese naval activities near or in the Japanese waters that alarmed the Japanese, including the passing of a flotilla of 10 naval vessels in the high seas between two main islands of Okinawa, that came with a provocative action of a Chinese helicopter coming in close proximity to a Japanese destroyer.
In recent months, the number of Chinese trawlers operating near the disputed areas has risen gradually, according to Japanese officials, reaching as many as 250 a day in August.
Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.Until the collision on Sept. 7, the Japanese coast guard had warned the trawlers to leave, and they obliged, said Japanese officials. Japan has also quietly, but repeatedly, launched complaints with Beijing to keep control of these vessels, citing the risks of collisions.
The Sept. 7 crash was the first such collision -- and Japanese officials call it an 'isolated' incident. The crash between the trawler and two Japanese coast guard patrol vessels took place near the area that Japan considers its territory. Japan maintains that the Chinese boat maliciously rammed its ships after being warned to leave what Japan considered its territory. Having arrested its captain for alleged obstruction of official duties, Japan says it is handling his case according to its domestic law.
China says the Japanese ships' chasing of the trawler led to the collision and has focused on Japan's 'illegal interception' of the Chinese vessel in its territory, known for its rich deposits of natural gas.
'We were praying this could be avoided,' said a Japanese government official. 'We knew what this would entail but it was a process that we couldn't avoid.'
Having extended the captain's detention period on Sept. 19, Japanese prosecutors are required to decide whether or not to indict him by Sept. 29.
Some say an indictment is likely, given that Japan has a video of the collision -- which Japan hasn't made public in order to be better able to use it as evidence in case of indictment.
While obstruction of official duties isn't considered a serious offense that requires imprisonment, an indictment would mean weeks and possibly months of keeping the captain in Japan for court proceedings. That would likely escalate the confrontation further.
Japan may be moving to seek a solution. After Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao urged Japan on Wednesday to 'immediately and unconditionally' release the captain, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said: 'It is desirable if we could hold a high-level meeting as early as possible.'
The U.S. on Thursday urged Japan and China to quickly resolve the dispute.
'Our sense is that neither side wants to see the situation escalate to the point that it has long-term regional impact,' State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said.
Mr. Crowley said that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told new Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara that good ties between China and Japan are crucial to Asia's prosperity.
Yuka Hayashi
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