【英语国际】日本可能就受损巡逻艇提出赔偿要求

Japan may demand compensation from Beijing for the repair of coast guard vessels damaged in a collision with a Chinese fishing boat that sparked the worst Sino-Japanese diplomatic dispute in years.

Tokyo on Monday said it was considering making a formal compensation claim after a weekend of testy exchanges that highlighted continuing tensions between the neighbours even after Japan released the captain of the Chinese fishing boat.

After the release of captain Zhan Qixiong on Saturday, Beijing demanded that Tokyo apologise and pay compensation for detaining him. Mr Zhan was detained several weeks ago after his boat collided with Japanese coast guard vessels near the Senkaku islands, an uninhabited group of isles controlled by Japan but claimed by China in the East China Sea.

Naoto Kan, Japan’s prime minister, on Sunday dismissed out of hand the Chinese demand for compensation.

On Monday, Yoshito Sengoku, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, suggested China should pay for the damage to the coast guard boats that Japanese officials say Mr Zhan caused by intentionally ramming them.

“I think we can naturally make a claim for repair (of the vessels) to their original condition,” Mr Sengoku said. “That should be a topic for our government.”

Mr Sengoku called on China to reflect on how the two sides could move forward with their “strategic relationship of mutual benefit”, adding that “the ball is now with China”.

日本可能要求中国政府赔偿修理多艘海上保安厅巡逻艇的费用。这些巡逻艇因与一艘中国渔船相撞而受损，撞船事件引发了中日两国多年来最严重的外交争议。

日本政府周一表示，正考虑提出正式的赔偿要求。之前的周末，中日双方在交流中火气很大，突显出即便日本释放了中国渔船船长，两个邻国之间的关系依旧紧张。

上周六，日本释放了中国渔船船长詹其雄之后，中国政府要求日本政府就扣押事件作出道歉和赔偿。几周前，詹其雄的渔船在钓鱼岛附近与日本海上保安厅数艘巡逻艇相撞，他随后被日本政府扣押。钓鱼岛位于东中国海，是日本控制下的一个无人居住的群岛，但中国宣称对其享有主权。

上周日，日本首相菅直人(Naoto Kan)不假思索地拒绝了中国的赔偿要求。

周一，日本内阁官房长官仙谷由人(Yoshito Sengoku)提出，中国政府应该对受损巡逻艇作出赔偿。日本官员称，詹其雄的渔船故意冲撞造成了这些巡逻舰受损。

“我认为，为了将巡逻艇修复到原状，我方提出赔偿要求是十分自然的，”仙谷由人表示。“这应该提上政府的议程。”

仙谷由人呼吁中国政府反思双方如何能够推进“中日战略互惠关系”，并补充称“现在轮到中国作出反应了”。

译者/何黎