０９回顧・国際 オバマ政権登場で動いた世界

The Yomiuri Shimbun (Dec. 30, 2009)
2009 provided plenty of grist for media mill
０９回顧・国際　オバマ政権登場で動いた世界（12月30日付・読売社説）

It has been a busy year. From a pandemic of a new type of influenza that hit the world this year to the struggles of the global economy to get out of recession to the prevention of nuclear proliferation and global environmental problems--the international community had to tackle a wide variety of issues.
　世界不況からの脱却へ模索が続く中、新型インフルエンザの世界的大流行に見舞われた。
　核の拡散防止や地球環境問題など、国際社会で取り組む課題が相次いだ。

On the list of the top 10 international news stories chosen by readers of The Yomiuri Shimbun, Barack Obama's inauguration as U.S. president and his winning of the Nobel Peace Prize ranked second and fifth respectively. This shows how popular Obama is, even in Japan.
　本紙の読者が選ぶ「海外１０大ニュース」は、オバマ米大統領の就任（２位）とノーベル平和賞の受賞（５位）が上位入りした。オバマ人気の高さがうかがえる。

　◆「核なき世界」を決議◆
In April, Obama announced his target of a nuclear free world during a speech in Prague--a story that ranked 13th on the list. Although he said it would be difficult to realize that goal during his lifetime, Obama chaired a summit-level meeting of the U.N. Security Council in September and led the council to approve a historic resolution aimed at ridding the world of nuclear weapons--a story that ranked 15th on the list.
　オバマ大統領は４月、プラハでの演説で「核兵器なき世界」の実現を訴えた（１３位）。自らが生きている間の実現は難しいとしたが、９月の国連安全保障理事会の首脳級会合で議長を務め、「核兵器なき世界」を目指す決議を採択に導いた（１５位）。

However, Obama said during a speech at the Nobel Peace Prize award ceremony in December; "The instruments of war do have a role to play in preserving the peace," positioning the U.S. war in Afghanistan and other conflicts as "just wars."
He made the remark as the leader of the world's preeminent superpower, based on the cold, hard realities of the world.
　そのオバマ大統領は１２月のノーベル平和賞の受賞演説で、「平和維持のためには戦争という手段が演じる役割もある」と述べ、アフガニスタン戦争などを「正しい戦争」と位置づけた。超大国の最高指導者として、冷徹な現実を踏まえた発言だった。

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N. Korea still source of concern

In April, North Korea test-fired a long-range ballistic missile--the news story raking sixth on the list. The U.N. Security Council immediately adopted a presidential statement condemning the launch, but Pyongyang held an underground nuclear test in May (story No. 14 on the list).
　北朝鮮は４月に弾道ミサイルを発射した（６位）。国連安保理は非難声明を採択したが、さらに北朝鮮は５月、地下核実験を強行した（１４位）。

As it was the second nuclear test North Korea has conducted since 2006, it was reasonable that the Security Council unanimously approved a resolution widening sanctions against the reclusive state.
　２００６年以来２度目の核実験で、国連安保理が制裁決議を採択したのは当然だった。

Though the United States and China are continuing negotiations with North Korea, the six-way talks aimed at stopping Pyongyang's nuclear development program have remained suspended and will see the old year out without any likelihood of resumption.
　米中による北朝鮮への働きかけが続いているが、中断されたままの６か国協議は、再開のメドが立たないまま越年する。

The news story ranked eighth was the riots by Muslim Uygurs that erupted in Urumqi, the capital of China's Xingjian Uygur Autonomous Region, in which 197 people died. The incident highlighted the antagonism between China's majority Han people and Uygurs, showing that ethnic minority issues could prove to be the Achilles' heel of China, whose economy continues to grow rapidly.
　経済成長著しい中国の新疆ウイグル自治区で暴動が発生、１９７人が死亡した（８位）。漢族とウイグル族の反目も露(あら)わになり、少数民族問題が中国のアキレス腱(けん)であることが鮮明になった。

In October, China celebrated the 60th anniversary of People's Republic of China, staging the military parade for the first time in 10 years, a story readers ranked 18th. It symbolized the efforts by the Chinese Communist Party and the government to boost national prestige. However, the administration of Chinese President Hu Jintao, who has just three more years or so in office, is facing a mountain of problems such as the growing gap between the rich and the poor, and spreading corruption.
　中国は１０月、建国６０周年を迎え、１０年ぶりに軍事パレードを実施した（１８位）。国威発揚に向けた党・政府の取り組みだが、貧富の差の拡大や汚職の増加など、残りの任期３年余りとなった胡錦濤政権にとって課題は山積だ。

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Deadly blaze

The news story ranked seventh on the list is the shooting range fire in Busan, South Korea, in November that killed 15, including 10 Japanese tourists.
　韓国南部の釜山で１１月、室内射撃場で火災が発生し、日本人観光客１０人が死亡した（７位）。

Also in South Korea, former President Roh Moo-hyun killed himself in May and Kim Dae Jung, former president and recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize, passed away in August, both of which were sad news for South Koreans.
　その韓国では盧武鉉・前大統領が５月に自殺し、ノーベル平和賞受賞者の金大中・元大統領も８月に死去した。

From the first outbreak in Mexico in April, a new type of flu spread around the world this year. According to the World Health Organization, the global death toll from the disease, including deaths in Japan, topped 10,000. This was the No. 1 story on the The Yomiuri Shimbun's list of the top 10 international news stories.
　４月にメキシコで発生した新型インフルエンザは、世界に広がった。世界保健機関（ＷＨＯ）によれば、日本を含む世界全体の死者は１万人を突破した。これが本紙海外ニュースの１位である。

The new flu pandemic highlighted various concerns about the way governments around the world cooperate to fight the global spread of infectious diseases. Developing countries suffered shortages of vaccines against the type A H1N1 flu virus.
　途上国ではワクチンの供給が不足するなど、感染症の世界的な拡大における国際協力のあり方に教訓を残したと言える。

The financial crisis entered its second year in the wake of momentous events in the first half of the year including the bankruptcies of major U.S. auto manufacturers General Motors and Chrysler--the story ranked fourth on the list of international news stories.
　２年目に入った金融危機は、米自動車業界大手のゼネラル・モーターズ（ＧＭ）やクライスラーが相次いで経営破綻(はたん)に追い込まれる（４位）など、今年前半は厳しい状況が続いた。

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Economy bottoms out
　◆経済最悪期は脱した◆

Financial summit meetings of the Group of 20, at which leaders of the 19 nations and the European Union discussed what measures they should take to combat the economic crisis and fix the global economy, were held in London in April and Pittsburgh in September. With the nations cooperatively carrying out fiscal measures and monetary easing policies, it is believed that the worst of the global economic crisis is over.
　世界の景気対策を協議する２０か国・地域（Ｇ２０）首脳による金融サミットが４月にロンドンで、９月に米ピッツバーグで、それぞれ開催された。各国は連携して財政出動や金融緩和策などを実施した結果、世界経済の最悪期は脱したとされる。

The G-20 released a leaders' statement in which they proclaimed the G-20 to be the premier forum for international economic cooperation, a development that appears to weaken the influence of the Group of Eight summit of industrialized nations.
　Ｇ２０は国際経済を議論する最上位の会合へ格上げをする、との首脳声明を発表した。現在の主要８か国による首脳会議（Ｇ８）の影は薄くなることが懸念される。

Concerning international cooperation to combat global warming, the Conference of Parties to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen (COP15) failed to set concrete reduction goals for greenhouse gasses. The participating nations were able to avert a complete breakdown in negotiations and somehow maintained a positive attitude toward resolving the issue. However, various problems remain unsolved.
　地球温暖化防止では、１２月のコペンハーゲンでの国連気候変動枠組み条約第１５回締約国会議（ＣＯＰ１５）で、具体的な削減目標を設定できなかった。決裂を回避し、解決に取り組む姿勢は維持できたが、課題は残された。

In September, a magnitude-8 earthquake hit the island nation of Samoa in the South Pacific, followed by a magnitude 7.6 quake that struck off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. In all, more than 1,000 people were killed or went missing, a story that was ranked ninth by Yomiuri Shimbun readers.
　９月、南太平洋のサモア諸島沖でのマグニチュード（Ｍ）８の地震に続いて、インドネシアのスマトラ島沖でもＭ７・６の地震が起き、合わせて１０００人を超える死者・不明者が出た（９位）。

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Lightning fast

The 10th ranked story was considerably more cheerful--Usain Bolt of Jamaica won three world athletic titles at the World Championships in Athletics in August, breaking world records in the 100-meter and 200-meter sprints and winning a third gold in the 400-meter relay.
　明るいニュースでは、世界陸上の雄、ウサイン・ボルト選手（ジャマイカ）が８月、男子１００メートルと２００メートルで世界新記録で優勝し、男子リレーでの優勝と合わせ３冠を獲得した（１０位）。

　◆テロとの戦いは続く◆
In less happy news, golf superstar Tiger Woods, 33, stunned the world with his involvement in extramarital affairs with several women. The scandal led him to announce in December that he would take an indefinite break from professional golf.
　一方、男子ゴルフ界のスーパースター、タイガー・ウッズ選手は、複数の女性との不倫騒動が発覚し、世間を驚かせた。１２月、ツアー出場の無期限自粛を自ら宣言する羽目に陥った。

The sudden death in June of singer Michael Jackson startled his fans around the globe--a story ranked third on the list by readers. Jackson was only 50 years old. Police continue to investigate accusations of criminal wrongdoing against the celebrity's personal physician.
　歌手マイケル・ジャクソンさんが６月、突然に死去したことも世界中のファンを驚かせた（３位）。５０歳の若さであり、専属医を巡る捜査は今も継続している。

Bombing attacks by terrorists are an almost daily event in Iraq and Afghanistan. In December, Obama announced that the United States would dispatch an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan in the first half of next year and that it would start withdrawing troops from the country beginning July 2011. The war against terrorism will continue into next year and beyond.
　イラクやアフガニスタンでは、連日のように爆弾テロが起きている。オバマ大統領は１２月、アフガンに兵士３万人を来年前半に追加増派し、２０１１年７月をメドに米軍撤収を始めると発表した。テロとの戦いは来年以降も続く。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Dec. 30, 2009)
（2009年12月30日01時17分 読売新聞）