対「北」制裁緩和 「行動対行動」の原則を貫け

The Yomiuri Shimbun
Adhere firmly to ‘action for action’ principle over N. Korea sanctions
対「北」制裁緩和　「行動対行動」の原則を貫け

The more North Korea acts positively to resolve the issue of abductions of Japanese citizens, the more Japan should offer encouragement suited to that end. This country should adhere strictly and consistently to the principle of “action for action.”
　北朝鮮が日本人拉致問題で前向きな対応を取れば、日本もそれに見合った措置を行う。あくまで「行動対行動」の原則を貫くべきだ。

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has expressed Japan’s intention to lift some of the country’s unilateral sanctions against North Korea. This is because the Japanese government has put a high value on the framework of the “Special Investigation Committee” Pyongyang has committed to setting up on Friday for the reinvestigation of the Japanese abductees and related issues.
　安倍首相が、北朝鮮に対する日本独自の制裁の一部を解除すると表明した。北朝鮮が拉致被害者らの再調査のため４日に設置する「特別調査委員会」の体制を評価したためだ。

The National Defense Commission, headed by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, concurrently the first secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, has given the investigative body the mandate to conduct probes into any of North Korea’s government organizations. The body will reportedly be headed by So Tae Ha, vice minister of the State Security Ministry, who doubles as a counselor in charge of security at the National Defense Commission.
　調査委は、金正恩第１書記をトップとする国防委員会から、北朝鮮の全機関を調査する権限を与えられた。国防委安全担当参事を兼務するソ・テハ国家安全保衛部副部長が委員長を務めるという。

Abe said at a press conference on Thursday that an “unprecedented framework capable of making decisions at the state level will come to the fore” in Pyongyang. If this framework actually works, it will likely be possible to attain the goal of completing the investigations “within a period of one year” as pledged by North Korea.
　首相は「国家的な決断、意思決定をできる組織が前面に出る、かつてない体制ができたと判断した」と語った。仮にこの体制が実際に機能するなら、目標の「１年以内の調査完了」が可能だろう。

In response to Pyongyang’s commitments, Japan will lift restrictions on travel between the two countries and ease restrictions on cash taken from Japan into North Korea as well as remittances to the country. While allowing the entry of North Korean-registered vessels into Japanese ports only for humanitarian purposes, the Japanese government will keep in place the ban on the entry of the Mangyongbong-92 cargo-passenger ship.
　日本は、日朝間の人的往来の規制を解除し、北朝鮮への現金持ち出しや送金の規制を緩める。人道目的の北朝鮮籍船舶の日本入港は認めるが、貨客船「万景峰号」の入港禁止は継続する。

This step is expected to be effective in prompting North Korea to take further constructive measures to handle the pending issues.
　北朝鮮に一層の建設的な対応を促すのに有効だろう。

In addition to known abduction victims and missing Japanese suspected of being abducted by North Korean agents, the investigations will cover Japanese women who remained in the country as wives of North Korean men after going there as part of the North’s movement to repatriate its citizens living in Japan from the 1950s to the 1980s. It has been reported the investigation committee will comprise four subpanels in accordance with the categories of the probe’s multiple objectives.
　調査は、拉致被害者や拉致の可能性のある特定失踪者に加え、帰還事業で北朝鮮へ渡った日本人妻なども対象となる。調査委は対象別に４分科会を設けるという。

Following through on deal

As Abe has said this is “only the start” on a road to a comprehensive resolution of the issues, it is indispensable for the government to scrutinize progress as needed to ascertain whether North Korea is sincere in its efforts to undertake the investigations.
　首相が「これはスタートでしかない」と語ったように、北朝鮮が調査を真剣に履行するよう、政府は随時、進捗しんちょく状況をチェックすることが欠かせない。

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga announced the prospect Thursday that Japan will receive the first report on the probes from North Korea sometime from the end of summer to the beginning of autumn this year. It will be necessary for Japan to examine the contents of the report, while taking when necessary such measures as sending an investigation team from Tokyo to Pyongyang and asking North Korea to conduct additional investigations.
　菅官房長官は、今夏の終わりから秋の初めに北朝鮮から最初の報告を受けるとの見通しを示した。報告内容を精査し、調査団を北朝鮮に派遣したり、追加調査を注文したりする必要がある。

Further easing of Japan’s sanctions must of course be contingent on whether North Korea’s investigation activities are deemed successful in producing tangible results. In the event that North Korea fails to act sincerely, the option of Japan rescinding the easing of the sanctions should not be ruled out.
　制裁をさらに緩和する場合は、北朝鮮の調査が具体的な成果を生むことが前提となる。北朝鮮が不誠実な対応をすれば、制裁の復活も排除すべきではない。

What cannot be overlooked in connection with this is North Korea’s launching of ballistic missiles on June 29 into the Sea of Japan just ahead of the latest Tokyo-Pyongyang consultations. The missile firing is in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions over the matter, and it is only natural that the Japanese government lodged a protest with North Korea over the test launches.
　看過できないのは、日朝協議の前に北朝鮮が弾道ミサイルを日本海に発射したことだ。国連安全保障理事会決議に違反しており、政府が抗議したのは当然である。

While some analysts have argued that the missile launch may have been primarily aimed at discouraging closer ties between China and South Korea, the military provocation by the North will only serve to further deepen the international isolation of Pyongyang.
　ミサイル発射には、中国と韓国の接近をけん制する狙いもあるとされるが、軍事的挑発は北朝鮮の国際的孤立を深めるだけだ。

The abduction problem is undoubtedly a problem that must fundamentally be resolved through Japan’s own efforts to negotiate with North Korea. The Japanese government, however, should inform adequately both the United States and South Korea of the negotiation process to ensure the three countries’ current containment strategy of the North’s nuclear weapons and missile development programs is not adversely affected.
　拉致問題は、基本的に日本が独自に北朝鮮と交渉し、解決すべきものだ。ただ、日本は、その経過を米韓両国にも適切に伝え、核・ミサイル問題の対北朝鮮包囲網を崩さないことが大切である。

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, July 4, 2014)