韓國海警首次用機槍向中國漁船開火
South Korea’s coastguard has for the first time opened fire on Chinese fishing trawlers, which are increasingly straying into Seoul’s territorial waters amid growing Chinese demand for fresh seafood.
韓國海警首次向中國拖網漁船開火。隨着中國對新鮮海鮮的需求不斷增長，中國漁船越來越多地越界進入韓國領海。
Tuesday’s incident comes less than a month after Seoul warned it would use a “more aggressive” firearms policy in encounters with illegal fishing vessels. This was prompted by the sinking of a 4.5-tonne Korean coastguard ship that was rammed while trying to intercept a trawler.
週二的事件發生不到一個月前，首爾方面警告稱，它將在遭遇非法漁船時採用“更爲果敢”的武器政策。這一警告的導火線是，一艘4.5噸的韓國海警船在試圖攔截一艘拖網漁船時被撞沉。
The coastguard seized two trawlers after firing about 700 M60 machine gun rounds at a fleet of 30 fishing ships South Korean authorities say had “rushed” its vessels. No one was killed or injured in the incident, which coastguard official Kim Jung-shik said was sparked by the threatening behaviour of the fishermen.
韓國海警用M60機槍向一支30艘漁船的船隊——韓方稱這些漁船“衝撞”了韓方海警船——發射大約700發子彈後，扣押了兩艘拖網漁船。這起事件沒有造成人員死傷；韓國海警官員金正植（音，Kim Jung-shik）表示，事件是由漁民們的威脅行爲引發的。
“Initially, we sent warnings but they kept approaching us, making the situation serious,” Mr Kim told Yonhap, South Korea’s state news agency. “I thought that if we tolerated their resistance further, the coastguard men would be in jeopardy. So we used the machine gun.”
“最初我方發出警告，但他們不斷逼近我們，使情況變得嚴重，”金正植對韓國官方的韓聯社(Yonhap)表示。 “我想，如果我方進一步容忍他們的抵抗，海警人員將陷入危險處境。所以我方動用了機槍。”
The incident in the Yellow Sea, west of the port of Incheon, is likely to be another blow to relations between Seoul and Beijing, which have been strained in recent months following a decision to place a US anti-ballistic missile system in South Korea.
在仁川港以西的黃海發生的這起事件，很可能給韓中關係造成又一個打擊。在韓國決定在境內部署美國反彈道導彈系統後，韓中關係在近幾個月本已緊張。
In response to the incident, China’s ministry of foreign affairs expressed “strong dissatisfaction” in a statement yesterday. “We have lodged multiple solemn representations to Korea on its coast guards’ violent enforcement techniques.”
針對這起事件，中國外交部昨日在一份聲明中表示“強烈不滿”。“我們已就韓國海警暴力執法問題多次提出嚴正交涉。”
Seoul authorities say the Terminal High Altitude Air Defense platform, or Thaad, is aimed at preventing strikes from North Korea, which recently conducted a fifth nuclear test. Beijing views the deployment as a threat to its own nuclear deterrent and an attempt to further US surveillance of China.
首爾方面稱，“末段高空區域防禦系統”（THAAD，簡稱：薩德）旨在防範朝鮮的打擊；最近朝鮮進行了第五次核試驗。北京方面則認爲，這一部署對中國的核威懾是一種威脅，是延伸美國對華監視的一種企圖。
The clash with the South Korean coastguard is at least the third time this year Chinese fishermen have been attacked by foreign law enforcement vessels. In March, Argentina sank a Chinese fishing boat it alleged was fishing illegally in its waters, while in June Indonesia injured one sailor after opening fire in a similar incident.
與韓國海警之間的衝突，是今年以來中國漁民至少第三次受到外國執法船的攻擊。3月，阿根廷擊沉了中國的一艘漁船，稱該船當時在其水域非法捕魚。6月，印尼在一起類似事件中開火，打傷一名水手。
Fishing disputes are common throughout Asia, where fishermen have become proxies for a growing number of maritime disputes, presenting an array of potential flashpoints between countries with overlapping claims. In recent years, many countries have mobilised government vessels traditionally used for maritime law enforcement to reinforce their territorial claims.
漁業糾紛在整個亞洲很常見，有關國家的漁民在越來越多的海洋爭端中成爲代理人，在主權主張重疊的國家之間形成一連串潛在閃點。近年來，許多國家動用傳統上用於海上執法的公務船強化領土聲索。
Meanwhile, use of fishing boats to test other nations’ claims has been increasing. Analysts say some Chinese fishing trawlers are operated by China’s “maritime militia”, crewed in all likelihood by volunteers taking orders from the military.
同時，使用漁船試探其他國家主權聲索的情況也在增加。分析人士稱，中國的一些拖網漁船由中國的“海上民兵”操作，船員極有可能是聽從軍方命令的志願者。
