英闻天下——85 US Back in Asia-Pacific

 　　"As I make it clear in Australia, we will be strengthening our presence in the Asia Pacific, and budget reductions will not come at the expense of that critical region. We are going to continue investing in our critical partnerships² and alliances."

 

　　U.S President Barack Obama was announcing the revamp of the national defense³ strategy at the beginning of 2012, shifting the focus to Asia-Pacific region, despite a multi-billion dollar defense budget cut.

 

　　US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta later detailed⁴ the plan further, saying the US is going to deploy⁵ about 60 percent of its naval⁶ fleet, including six aircraft carriers, to the Asia-Pacific by 2020.

 

　　Following a series of defense talks with countries including Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines, in December the Pentagon announced plans to deploy some of its newest warships⁷ and other high-tech⁸ weapons to the region.

 

　　Professor Meng Xiangqing from China's PLA University of National Defense says the US "Pivot⁹ to Asia" comes at a time when the region's broader economy is booming.

 

　　"The U.S has somewhat neglected the Asia-Pacific region over the past ten years in Bush administration's anti-terrorism strategy. Over the years, the region's economy became the new powerhouse of world economy. Along with the rise of countries including China and India, the economic significance of the U.S has declined in the region. As a result, the US influence in the region is waning¹⁰. "

 

　　Since first launching a "Back in Asia" initiative in 2009, the Obama administration has been busy renewing and strengthening its diplomatic ties with its traditional allies in the region, while at the same time, forging ties with other ASEAN countries.

 

　　Secretary of State Hilary Clinton took part in three Asian tours in 2012, including a highly-watched visit to Laos.

 

　　Meanwhile, Obama himself also took part in a four-day Asian tour, with stops in Thailand, Cambodia and a historic stop in Myanmar less than two weeks after being re-elected as the U.S president.

 

　　During his time in Myanmar - the first as a sitting US President - Obama signed off on a deal to soften¹¹ previous sanctions on the country, and removed a ban on most imports.

 

　　Despite the ramping¹² up of diplomatic ties, Professor Meng Xiangqing says the approach may not deliver the results the Pentagon wants.

 

　　"There are conflicts of interests here. Countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia have strong economic ties with China. Some may count on the U.S to beef up defense and security, but they do not want the U.S to set up agenda for them. On the other hand, the U.S has a different goal; it intends to regain¹³ its dominance in the region and be the one who sets rules. This is not what these countries want."

 

　　Dating back to 2011, the U.S has been calling for a Trans-Pacific Partnership¹ that would give U.S goods tariff-free entry into a number of regional countries including Singapore, Australia and Vietnam.

 

　　However, China has been excluded from the picture.

 

　　This has led to some observers to suggest the United States' policy toward the Asia-Pacific is designed to try to contain China.

 

　　Both Hillary Clinton and Leon Panetta have denied the suggestion, saying the Pacific is "big enough for all of us".

 

　　The Pentagon also made clear that it will not take sides in the territorial¹⁴ disputes over the Diaoyu Islands and Huangyan Island.

 

　　Professor Yu Nanping with the School of Advanced International Studies at East China Normal University says given the complicated diplomatic environment, the authorities should never lose sight of the economic links between China and the US.

 

　　"Although we have seen some frictions¹⁵ in Sino-US relations over the years, overall we have seen developments. This is due to the strong economic ties China has with the U.S. The same logic¹⁶ can also be applied¹⁷ to China's relations with other countries in the Asia-Pacific region. The stronger economic ties we have, the more common interests we will share with other countries. "

 

　　China and the U.S are now each other's second-largest trading partners, with bilateral¹⁸ trade approaching 500 billion U.S dollars.

 

　　At the same time, China-ASEAN bilateral trade has approched close to 400-billion dollars this past year, with the latest figure coming in at 360 billion dollars through the first 11 months of 2012.

 

　　Talks to set up a free trade zone among China, Japan and South Korea are also set to kick off this year.

 

　　For CRI, I'm Shen Ting.

1 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

2 partnerships   

n.伙伴关系( partnership的名词复数 )；合伙人身份；合作关系

参考例句：

• Partnerships suffer another major disadvantage: decision-making is shared. 合伙企业的另一主要缺点是决定要由大家来作。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件
• It involved selling off limited partnerships. 它涉及到售出有限的合伙权。 来自辞典例句

3 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

4 detailed   

adj.详细的，详尽的，极注意细节的，完全的

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。

5 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

6 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

7 warships   

军舰，战舰( warship的名词复数 )； 舰只

参考例句：

• The enemy warships were disengaged from the battle after suffering heavy casualties. 在遭受惨重伤亡后，敌舰退出了海战。
• The government fitted out warships and sailors for them. 政府给他们配备了战舰和水手。

8 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

9 pivot   

v.在枢轴上转动；装枢轴，枢轴；adj.枢轴的

参考例句：

• She is the central pivot of creation and represents the feminine aspect in all things.她是创造的中心枢轴，表现出万物的女性面貌。
• If a spring is present,the hand wheel will pivot on the spring.如果有弹簧，手轮的枢轴会装在弹簧上。

10 waning   

adj.（月亮）渐亏的，逐渐减弱或变小的n.月亏v.衰落( wane的现在分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• Her enthusiasm for the whole idea was waning rapidly. 她对整个想法的热情迅速冷淡了下来。
• The day is waning and the road is ending. 日暮途穷。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

12 ramping   

土堤斜坡( ramp的现在分词 )； 斜道； 斜路； （装车或上下飞机的）活动梯

参考例句：

• The children love ramping about in the garden. 孩子们喜欢在花园里追逐嬉戏，闹着玩。
• Have you ever seen a lion ramping around? 你看到过狮子暴跳吗？

13 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

14 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

15 frictions   

n.摩擦( friction的名词复数 )；摩擦力；冲突；不和

参考例句：

• Family frictions can interfere with a child's schoolwork. 家庭中的争吵会影响孩子的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• As far as we are concerned, these frictions are not of our own making [have been imposed on us]. 就我们来说，这种摩擦是被动式的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

16 logic   

n.逻辑(学)；逻辑性

参考例句：

• What sort of logic is that?这是什么逻辑？
• I don't follow the logic of your argument.我不明白你的论点逻辑性何在。

17 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

18 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。