雷克斯·蒂勒森的中國綜合症:大聲說話和承諾大棒

Rex Tillerson got strangely carried away at his confirmation hearing. He’s on the verge of becoming the U.S. secretary of state but at one point he seemed to be channelling the bellicosity of his soon-to-be-boss president-elect Donald J. Trump.

前埃克森美孚CEO在國務卿審議聽證會上出奇的激動。他似乎被他即將上任的上司川普的好鬥個性所感染了。

The former CEO of Exxon Mobil was right to criticize the Chinese government for threatening the freedom of the seas and bulldozing its neighbours’ territorial claims by building artificial islands in disputed parts of the South China Sea.

這位埃克森美孚前任CEO正確地批評了中國政府，即在南海爭議部分造島威脅海洋自由和否定了鄰國對南海的領土申訴。

But Mr. Tillerson didn’t just criticize Beijing. He went far beyond that. He said that the United States should respond by surrounding the artificial islands preventing the Chinese Navy and Air Force from being able to access military installations on land that China claims as part of its territory. As he put it China’s “access to those islands is not going to be allowed.” It would amount to a blockade – an act of war. That would literally start the Trump administration with a bang.

但是蒂勒森先生不僅僅只是指責了北京。他所言遠不止如此。他說，美國應該包圍那些人造島嶼以阻止中國海軍和空軍的軍事設施進入那些中國聲索主權的島嶼。他放話說“那些島嶼將禁止進入。”這相當於封鎖——一種戰爭行爲。這些言論簡直爲特朗普的行政團隊開了個好頭。