離島防衛訓練 自衛隊に海兵隊機能が必要だ

The Yomiuri Shimbun June 26, 2013
SDF must be equipped with functions like those of U.S. marines
離島防衛訓練　自衛隊に海兵隊機能が必要だ（6月25日付・読売社説）

To bolster the defense of Senkakus and other remote islands, the Self-Defense Forces urgently require upgraded capabilities similar to those of the U.S. Marine Corps, such as the ability to carry out amphibious landings and rapid deployment.
　尖閣諸島を含めた離島防衛を強化するには、海からの着上陸や緊急展開の能力などの「海兵隊的機能」を自衛隊に持たせることが急務だ。

The SDF and the U.S. military have been conducting joint exercises in California for the defense of remote islands. This is the first time the Ground, Maritime and Air Self-Defense Forces have all conducted overseas exercises with the U.S. military.
　自衛隊と米軍が１０～２６日に米カリフォルニア州で、離島防衛の共同訓練を実施している。陸海空３自衛隊と米軍による海外での統合訓練は初めてである。

During the training, the U.S. military’s new MV-22 Osprey transport aircraft landed on the deck of an MSDF destroyer. The GSDF’s Western Army Infantry Regiment, which is primarily responsible for the defense of remote islands, was engaged in joint training with U.S. marines to regain remote islands captured by an enemy.
　訓練では、米軍の新型輸送機ＭＶ２２オスプレイが海上自衛隊の護衛艦に着艦した。離島防衛を主任務とする陸上自衛隊の西方普通科連隊は、海兵隊とともに、敵に占領された離島の奪還も行った。

These are practical exercises to meet the needs of the times, as the defense of remote islands is of increased importance.
　離島防衛の重要性が増す中、時宜にかなう実戦的な訓練だ。

Chinese expansionism

Training has been conducted with the Chinese military as the supposed enemy. China called for the training to be canceled as its timing overlapped with a U.S.-China summit meeting. It is natural that Tokyo and Washington refused the Chinese request.
　訓練は中国軍を対象に想定している。米中首脳会談の時期と重なったため、中国は中止を求めた。日米が拒否したのは当然だ。

Under the banner of making China a maritime power, that country’s navy, air force and State Oceanic Administration have been bolstering their equipment, openly aiming to expand their territorial and national interests in the East and South China seas.
　中国は「海洋強国化」の名の下、海空軍や国家海洋局の装備を増強し、公然と東・南シナ海での領土・権益拡大を目指している。

Intrusions by China’s maritime surveillance ships into Japanese territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands can be dealt with by the Japan Coast Guard. But to deter Chinese special forces from occupying the islands, it will be indispensable to improve the quick reaction capabilities that can be acquired through the joint exercises of the SDF and U.S. military.
　海洋監視船による尖閣諸島周辺の領海侵入には海上保安庁が対応するにせよ、中国の特殊部隊による島の占拠などを抑止するには、共同訓練を通じた自衛隊と米軍の即応力の向上が欠かせない。

Military threats to Japan have changed dramatically since the end of the Cold War. Invasions of remote islands can be considered “new threats” along with missile strikes, terrorist attacks and cyber-attacks. SDF personnel allocations, equipment and training must be reexamined in accordance with the changed threats.
　冷戦終結後、日本の軍事的脅威は大きく変化した。離島侵攻は、ミサイル、テロ、サイバー攻撃とともに、「新たな脅威」と位置づけられる。脅威の変化に応じて、自衛隊の部隊編成や装備、訓練を見直さなければならない。

Defense of remote islands will be a core of the new National Defense Program Guidelines to be compiled by late December.
　今年末に策定する新防衛大綱では離島防衛が一つの柱となる。

It will be essential to augment the GSDF’s Western Army Infantry Regiment, which plays a central role in defense of the Nansei Islands stretching from Kagoshima Prefecture through Okinawa Prefecture, as well as to obtain equipment such as amphibious landing vehicles. To secure naval and air supremacy, it will be necessary to increase the number of MSDF destroyers and ASDF fighter jets and early warning aircraft so as to strengthen warning and surveillance activities.
　南西諸島防衛の中核を担う陸自西方普通科連隊を拡充し、水陸両用車など装備を増強すべきだ。制海・制空権の確保へ、海自の護衛艦や航空自衛隊の戦闘機、早期警戒管制機なども増やし、警戒監視活動を強化する必要がある。

New hardware needed

Procurement of the Global Hawk, an unmanned surveillance aircraft, must be accelerated while introduction of Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft must be studied earnestly.
　無人偵察機グローバルホークの取得を急ぐとともに、オスプレイの導入も真剣に検討したい。

Amphibious vehicles and Osprey aircraft will be useful for rescue operations and relief activities in damaged areas in times of major disasters such as earthquakes.
　水陸両用車やオスプレイは、地震など大規模災害時の人命救助や被災地支援にも効果があろう。

The administration of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has boosted the defense budget for the current fiscal year, the first increase in 11 years, reversing the trend of year-on-year erosion in defense spending. Given the worsening of the security environment around Japan, defense spending must be increased next fiscal year and onward. But a huge hike cannot be expected in light of stringent fiscal conditions.
　安倍政権は今年度、削減が続いていた防衛予算を１１年ぶりに増加させた。日本の安全保障環境が悪化する中、来年度以降も増加すべきだが、厳しい財政事情を踏まえれば、大幅な伸びは望めない。

It is essential to allocate defense budgets on a priority basis, such as by expanding allocations for bolstering “dynamic defense capabilities” that emphasize troop mobility, particularly for defense of remote islands, while curtailing spending through cuts in the number of GSDF personnel, consolidation and abolition of bases and efficient procurement of equipment.
　離島防衛を含む、部隊の機動力を重視する「動的防衛力」の強化など重点分野は大胆に増やす。一方で、陸自の定員削減や基地の統廃合、装備調達の効率化などで一部の歳出は減らす。防衛予算にメリハリをつけることが大切だ。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, June 25, 2013)
（2013年6月25日01時27分 読売新聞）