日本寻求在冲绳的美国军事用地于年底归还

NAHA — A cabinet minister in charge of Okinawa base issues has told local officials that the central government is seeking the return of roughly half of a large U.S. military training area in the island prefecture by year-end.

那霸 —— 一位负责冲绳基地问题的内阁部长告诉当地官员，中央政府正在寻求于年底前归还岛上的大约一半的大型军事训练区。

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga’s remarks over the return of land—within the U.S. military’s Northern Training Area in northern Okinawa—are viewed as a way for the government to demonstrate to local residents it is taking steps to ease Okinawa’s base-hosting burden.

内阁官房长官菅义伟对冲绳北部美军北方训练区内的土地归还所作的评论被视为政府向当地居民展示缓解冲绳基地运营负担的一种方式。

“(Japan) wants to negotiate with the United States to achieve the year-end return of the training area,” Suga said Saturday during a meeting with the chiefs of the villages of Kunigami and Higashi where the training area is located.

“（日本）希望与美国谈判以实现于年终时训练区的归还”，菅义伟于星期六在与训练区所在地的国头村和东村的村长会面时如此说。

A source familiar with the meeting, which took place in Okinawa’s Nago, said it was the first time a high-ranking official from the central government had said the land would be returned “by year-end.”

一位在冲绳的名护参加会议的消息灵通人士说，这是中央政府的一位高级官员第一次说出土地将于“年底”归还。

Suga conveyed a similar message to Okinawa Gov. Takeshi Onaga in a meeting in Naha. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Suga said he told Onaga that the central government is “negotiating with the U.S. military for the return of 4,000 hectares.”

菅义伟在那霸会议上传达了类似的消息给冲绳县政府的翁长雄志。 菅义伟在会后向记者说，他告诉翁长，中央政府正在“与美国军方谈判归还4000公顷土地。”

The United States agreed in 1996 to return to Japan about 4,000 of the approximately 7,800 hectares that make up the training area, provided helipads are relocated from the portion of the base to be returned to an area to be retained.

美国在1996年时同意由大约7800公顷土地所组成的训练区中的大约4000公顷土地归还日本，只要将基地中的直升机停机坪搬迁到一个需要保留的地区。

The return would reduce the acreage of land occupied by U.S. military facilities in Okinawa by 17 percent, and would be the most land returned since the 1972 reversion of Okinawa to Japan from U.S. control.

此次土地归还将把冲绳县内的美国军事设施所占用的土地面积减少17％，并且是自1972年从美国控制下回归到日本冲绳手中最大的一次土地归还。

Onaga, Kunigami Mayor Hisakazu Miyagi and Higashi Mayor Seikyu Iju supported seeking the return by year-end.

翁长，国头村村长宫城久和与东村村长伊集盛久都支持寻求于年底归还土地。

“There are various issues but the prefecture’s policy is for the early return, so this is welcome,” the governor said after meeting Suga, who is on a weekend trip to the southwestern prefecture.

“虽然有各种各样的问题，但是县政府的政策是为了早日土地归还，所以这是欢迎的，”县知事在一个周末到县西南部旅行时会见菅义伟如此说道。

The outlook for construction of the helipads remains uncertain, however, as local residents oppose further construction due to noise and other concerns over their use by Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.

然而，直升机停机坪的建设前景仍然不确定，因为当地居民担心由于使用鱼鹰倾斜旋翼飞机所产生的噪声以及其它原因而反对进一步建设。

Two of the six helipads have already been completed. Construction work.began in 2007, but was later suspended due to protests. The work resumed in July, but protests around the construction site continue.

六个直升机停机坪中有两个已经建造完成。 建筑工程始于2007年，但后来由于抗议而暂停。 工程于7月恢复，但建筑工地周围的抗议活动还在继续。

Suga, in his meeting with the mayors, suggested the remaining helipads will be completed by year-end. Onaga has opposed the restart of construction work.

菅义伟在与村长们会面时建议剩余的直升机停机坪将在年底前建造完成。翁长反对重新开始建设工作。

As the bulk of the U.S. military facilities in Japan are concentrated in Okinawa, the prefectural government has been calling for the central government to reduce the Okinawa people’s base-hosting burden, particularly by relocating a controversial U.S. military air base outside of the prefecture.

由于美国在日本的大部分军事设施集中在冲绳，县政府一直呼吁中央政府减少冲绳人民的基地运营负担，特别是通过搬迁一个有争议的美国空军基地到县内别处。

By highlighting the land return as the central government’s way to alleviate the burden, Suga appears to be hoping for progress in the long-stalled plan to relocate the U.S. Marine Corps’ Air Station Futenma from a crowded residential area in Ginowan to a less populated area in Nago.

通过突出土地回报作为中央政府减轻负担的方法，菅义伟似乎希望在长期搁置的计划中取得进展，将位于普天间的美国海军陆战队空军基地从吉诺湾一个拥挤的住宅区迁移到名护市某个人口较少的地区 。

Suga last visited Okinawa in June. On Saturday he sat down with the governor in earnest for the first time since a court last month ruled in favor of the central government over Onaga’s high-profile move to block the relocation of the Futenma base within OKinawa.

菅义伟最后于6月访问了冲绳。 星期六，他第一次认真地与县知事一起坐下来，因为上个月一个法庭裁决中央政府针对翁长阻止位于冲绳岛的普天间基地的搬迁这一高调举动有权进行干涉。