原爆忌 一段と高まる核兵器の脅威

The Yomiuri Shimbun August 7, 2013
Japan must take realistic option in face of increasing nuclear threat
原爆忌　一段と高まる核兵器の脅威（8月6日付・読売社説）

On Tuesday, Hiroshima marks the 68th anniversary of the atomic bombing of the city. Nagasaki will do the same Friday.
　広島は６日、長崎は９日に、それぞれ６８回目の原爆忌を迎える。

As the only nation ever to have been attacked with atomic weapons, how will Japan pass on the accounts of the terrible devastation wrought by the bombings and entreat the world to prevent nuclear weapons, which are inhumane by themselves, from being used again? The average age of atomic-bomb survivors has already passed 78.
　唯一の被爆国として、いかに原爆の惨禍を語り継ぎ、非人道的な核兵器が二度と使用されないよう世界に訴えていくか。被爆者の平均年齢は既に７８歳を超えた。

In a declaration of peace to be announced Tuesday at a peace memorial ceremony, Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui will pledge his utmost efforts to work toward the elimination of nuclear arms by 2020.
　広島市の松井一実市長は、きょうの平和記念式典で発表する平和宣言で、２０２０年までの核廃絶に全力を尽くすことを誓う。

But in light of the harsh realities of today’s world, high hurdles lie on the road to nuclear abolition.
　しかし、世界の現状は厳しく、廃絶へのハードルは高い。

The number of nuclear weapons, which totaled about 70,000 at the peak of the Cold War, has been cut significantly due to nuclear reduction talks between the United States and Russia. But more than 17,000 such weapons reportedly still remain.
　冷戦時代のピーク時に世界で計約７万発もあった核兵器は、米露核軍縮交渉で大幅に削減されたものの、なお１万７０００発以上も残っているとされる。

In a speech he made in Berlin in June, U.S. President Barack Obama proposed cutting the respective number of strategic nuclear warheads deployed by the two nuclear superpowers by about one-third. We hope negotiations on this matter will proceed steadily.
　今年６月、オバマ米大統領はベルリンで演説し、米露が配備している戦略核弾頭数を現在の３分の２程度にまで、それぞれ削減することを提案した。着実に推進してもらいたい。

Needless to say, nuclear disarmament is not an issue to be dealt with by Washington and Moscow alone. China and other nuclear powers should actively get involved in the issue.
　無論、核軍縮は米露だけの問題ではない。中国など他の核保有国も積極的に取り組むべきだ。

The nuclear control system under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which bans possession of nuclear arsenals by countries other than the United States, Russia, Britain, France and China, has been noticeably frayed for years.
　米露英仏中の５か国以外の核保有を禁止した核拡散防止条約（ＮＰＴ）体制に、ほころびが目立つようになって久しい。

N. Korea’s moves worrying

Of particular concern is North Korea’s attempt to make its possession of nuclear weapons a fait accompli. Following its test-firing of a long-range ballistic missile in December, North Korea charged ahead with its third nuclear test in February. It is accelerating efforts to develop nuclear warheads small enough to be mounted on a missile capable of reaching the continental United States.
　特に懸念されるのは、核保有の既成事実化を図る北朝鮮の動向だ。昨年１２月の長距離弾道ミサイル発射に続き、今年２月には３回目の核実験を強行した。米本土に届くミサイルと、搭載可能な小型核弾頭の開発を急いでいる。

All of Japan lies within range of Rodong intermediate-range ballistic missiles deployed by Pyongyang. If North Korea successfully develops nuclear warheads, it is highly likely Japan could become the target of its first nuclear strike.
　北朝鮮が実戦配備中の中距離弾道ミサイル「ノドン」は、日本のほぼ全域を射程に収める。核弾頭が完成すれば日本が先制核攻撃の標的となる確率は小さくない。

This concern is behind the emergence of support in the Liberal Democratic Party and elsewhere for the view that Japan should possess the capabilty to attack missile bases and other enemy facilities in self-defense.
　自民党などで、自衛のために相手国のミサイル基地などを攻撃する「敵基地攻撃能力」を保持すべきだという議論が起きているのはそのためである。

In cooperation with the United States and South Korea, as well as Beijing and Moscow, Japan must relentlessly urge Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear ambitions.
　米韓や中露と連携し、北朝鮮に対しても核放棄をねばり強く求め続けねばならない。

The U.S. nuclear umbrella is the bedrock of Japan’s national security policy. We believe its importance is increasing all the more.
　日本の安全保障政策の根幹にある米国の「核の傘」の重要性も高まっていると言えよう。

Since three years ago, Washington has been providing Tokyo with information on some nuclear facilities in the United States.
　米政府は３年前から、米国内の核施設の一部を日本政府に開示するようになった。

Promoting Japan-U.S. consultative talks on nuclear deterrence is essential for the bilateral alliance to function. This also will reinforce the deterrence policy.
　核抑止をめぐる日米協議の進展は、日米同盟を機能させる上で必須である。抑止力政策の強化にもつながる。

Telling the world about the awful devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and using the U.S. nuclear umbrella to protect national security from nearby nuclear threats: This is the realistic option Japan can take as an atomic-bombed nation and a country without nuclear weapons.
　広島、長崎の惨状を訴える一方で、周囲の核脅威には米国の核で安全を担保する。それが、被爆国であり、非核保有国としての日本が取り得る現実的選択である。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 6, 2013)
（2013年8月6日01時28分 読売新聞）