Potomac Correspondence: The Secret Room Bouts in Washington

Published in Sankei Shimbun
(Japan) on 25 January 2011
by Rui Sasaki (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Lynn Allmon. Edited by Hoishan Chan.
On Jan. 19, the gun salute at the welcoming ceremony, ripped through by cold weather, opened the America-China leadership summit. There are differing opinions, but at last night's informal dinner meeting I think most of the outcomes have been decided.

There is nothing more dreadful than a meeting at which no memos are given. Only occasionally do things come up that abuse the host country to its face and cause a loss of honor, and yet this sort of thing can leak out (of one's mouth).

The memory is still fresh of then-Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama last year at an evening dinner meeting, pierced by President Obama’s question, “Can you follow through?” regarding the issue of moving the U.S. military base outside of Japan. After this, the shamed Prime Minister Hatoyama never stepped foot in the White House again.

According to the American press, on Jan. 18 at the informal dinner meeting, President Obama expressed to the Chinese President Hu Jintao that if China did not put pressure on North Korea, the time draws near for it to be unavoidable that American troops be placed in Asia. It can easily be surmised that this was about human rights.

Those who were present, beside interpreters, were: on the American side, only President Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon; on the Chinese side, only about two close aides were present. There is no doubt President Hu, who attended a state dinner the next day, still felt ill at ease, as if he had been at an “away game” dinner.

The press conference and public news spread an image of a strong America, but if you seriously consider Washington, it is behind closed doors where victory in international contests is at stake. Collecting data at leadership conferences, we can catch a glimpse of this aspect of the negotiations.


ポトマック通信 密室勝負のワシントン
2011.1.25 02:51

 今月19日、寒空を切り裂く歓迎式典の礼砲で明けた米中首脳会談。異論はあろうが、前夜の非公式夕食会で、あらかたの勝敗は決していたように思う。

 メモをとらない会合ほど恐ろしいものはない。ホスト国からメンツを失うほど面罵されることが往々にしてあり、なおかつそれが外に漏れるからである。

 鳩山由紀夫前首相も昨年、夕食会でオバマ大統領から米軍基地の国外移転に関し、「本当にやり通せるのか」とクギを刺された一件は記憶に新しい。恥をかかされた鳩山氏は以後、ホワイトハウスには一歩も入れなかった。

 米紙によると、18日夜の非公式夕食会でオバマ大統領は、胡錦濤国家主席に中国が北朝鮮に圧力をかけなければ、アジアにおいて米軍を増強せざるを得ないと詰め寄った。人権については推して知るべしだ。

 同席したのは、通訳を除けば、米側がオバマ氏、クリントン国務長官、ドニロン大統領補佐官だけ。中国側は側近が2人ほど同席した。翌日、国賓待遇で晩餐(ばんさん)会に臨んだ胡氏だが、居心地の悪い「アウェー」での食事会だったに違いない。

 記者会見や情報公開など開かれたイメージの強い米国だが、ワシントンに関していえば、密室での勝負ごとを得意とする。首脳会談を取材してそんな一端を垣間見た。(佐々木類)
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