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The US is embroiled in a spat about whaling with Japan that threatens its main trade initiative in Asia just as President Joe Biden prepares to host his Japanese and South Korean counterparts for a historic trilateral summit.
就在美国总统乔•拜登(Joe Biden)准备主持与日本和韩国领导人的历史性三边峰会之际，美国与日本卷入了有关捕鲸的口角，威胁到美国在亚洲的主要贸易倡议。
The US trade representative has been pushing Japan to accept anti-whaling language in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, a 14-country trade deal Biden launched in Tokyo last year in an effort to counter China economically in Asia, according to eight people familiar with the situation.
据8名知情人士透露，美国贸易代表一直在推动日本接受《印太经济框架》(IPEF)中反对捕鲸的措辞。这是去年拜登在东京发起的贸易协议，有14个国家参与，目的是在亚洲从经济上对抗中国。
The US pressure has sparked anger in Tokyo, with some officials suggesting that Japan could walk away from an agreement that it backed to encourage American economic engagement in the region.
美国的压力在东京引发了愤怒，一些官员暗示，日本可能会退出一项它支持的、鼓励美国参与该地区经济活动的协议。
One senior Japanese official said the issue was such a non-starter for Tokyo that the government didn’t even consider it as “an issue of contention”. He said Japan would not participate in IPEF if the agreement included any language banning whaling.
一名日本高级官员表示，这个问题对日本政府来说是不可能解决的，以至于政府甚至不认为它是“一个有争议的问题”。他说，如果协议包含任何禁止捕鲸的条款，日本将不会加入IPEF。
It has also exposed divisions in the US administration, with some officials opposing the approach taken by USTR, according to several sources.
据几位消息人士透露，这也暴露了美国政府内部的分歧，一些官员反对美国贸易代表办公室(USTR)采取的这一做法。
The White House and USTR declined to comment. Noriyuki Shikata, spokesperson for the Japanese prime minister’s office, said Tokyo would refrain from commenting because negotiations were ongoing.
白宫和美国贸易代表办公室拒绝置评。日本首相办公室发言人四方敬之(Noriyuki Shikata)表示，由于谈判仍在进行中，东京方面将不予置评。
One person familiar with the situation said the Biden administration planned to remove the provision because of Japan’s opposition.
一位知情人士说，由于日本的反对，拜登政府计划取消这一条款。
Commercial whaling was banned by the International Whaling Commission in 1986. Japan previously got around the ban via a clause that allowed whales to be killed “for purposes of scientific research”, which sparked criticism from conservationists and other IWC members.
1986年，国际捕鲸委员会(International Whaling Commission)禁止商业捕鲸。此前，日本通过一项允许“以科学研究为目的”捕杀鲸鱼的条款，绕过了这项禁令，这引发了环保人士和其他国际捕鲸委员会成员的批评。
Japan pulled out of the IWC in 2019 and has since only allowed whales to be caught inside its exclusive economic zone. Its whaling industry has struggled to make a profit without subsidies for research, while public tastes have also changed.
日本于2019年退出国际捕鲸委员会，此后只允许在其专属经济区内捕鲸。日本捕鲸业在没有研究补贴的情况下难以盈利，同时公众的口味也发生了变化。
But the issue remains politically sensitive in Tokyo, which has led some US officials to argue that Washington should focus on making sure it finishes IPEF and avoid issues that threaten the deal.
但这个问题在东京方面仍具有政治敏感性，这导致一些美国官员辩称，华盛顿方面应专注于确保完成IPEF，避免出现威胁该协议的问题。
Christopher Johnstone, a former US government Japan expert now at the CSIS think-tank, said the logic of including restrictions on whaling in the trade pillar of IPEF was “dubious at best”.
前美国政府日本问题专家、现供职于智库战略与国际研究中心(CSIS)的克里斯托弗•约翰斯通(Christopher Johnstone)表示，将限制捕鲸纳入IPEF贸易支柱的逻辑“最多也就是值得怀疑的”。
“IPEF is already an initiative of questionable value, and most US partners, including Japan, are participating only because they are desperate for US economic engagement in the region,” said Johnstone. “Using IPEF to seek restrictions on whaling makes no sense and only serves to alienate Japan, the partner Washington needs more than any other if IPEF is to yield results.”
约翰斯通说：“IPEF的价值已经受到质疑，包括日本在内的大多数美国伙伴之所以参与，只是因为它们迫切希望美国参与该地区的经济活动。利用IPEF寻求限制捕鲸是没有意义的，只会疏远日本，如果IPEF要取得成果，华盛顿最需要的合作伙伴是日本。”
Tokyo was instrumental in helping the Biden administration launch IPEF, encouraging Washington to work with south-east Asian partners to ensure broader participation in the agreement.
东京方面在帮助拜登政府启动IPEF方面发挥了重要作用，它鼓励华盛顿与东南亚伙伴合作，确保该协议得到更广泛的参与。
Japan and other countries are supporting the effort partly because they hope it will lead to the US joining the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, a big trade agreement that Tokyo salvaged after then president Donald Trump pulled out of its predecessor.
日本和其他国家支持这一努力，部分原因是它们希望这将促使美国加入《全面与进步跨太平洋伙伴关系协定》(CPTPP)。在时任美国总统唐纳德•特朗普(Donald Trump)退出其前身协议后，日本挽救了这一重大贸易协定。
One person familiar with the talks said USTR initially pushed for language that would entail a complete ban on whaling. He said it later softened its approach, but that Japan remained adamant it would not support a deal that included any restrictions.
一位了解谈判情况的人士表示，美国贸易代表办公室最初推动的内容包括全面禁止捕鲸。他说，该办公室后来软化了态度，但日本仍然坚定地表示，不会支持包含任何限制的协议。
“It was a bit surprising that the US would put whaling on the table in a negotiation where it needs Japan’s undivided attention to help reach successful conclusion by November,” said Wendy Cutler, a former top USTR negotiator who is now vice-president of the Asia Society Policy Institute.
美国贸易代表办公室前首席谈判代表、现任亚洲协会政策研究所(Asia Society Policy Institute)副所长的温迪•卡特勒(Wendy Cutler)表示：“在一场需要日本全力以赴帮助在11月前达成成果的谈判中，美国将捕鲸问题摆上谈判桌，这有点令人意外。”
The rare dispute between the close allies comes as Biden prepares to host Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol for a summit at the Camp David retreat on August 18.
在这两个亲密盟友发生罕见的争端之际，拜登正准备于8月18日在戴维营接待日本首相岸田文雄(Fumio Kishida)和韩国总统尹锡悦(Yoon Suk Yeol)。
