3:31 沸腾的生活 来自秋爽斋

危险的寒暄：当中美战舰在南海遭遇

(翻译：Cindy Hao)

美国军舰切斯劳维尔号上，南中国海——当这艘海军巡洋舰驶入有争议的斯普拉特利群岛（Spratly Islands，中国称之为南沙群岛——译注）附近海域时，船上的内部通话系统响起了威胁的警告：“史奴比队走开...史奴比队走开。”（原文为Snoopie，英文中无此词，但它与卡通狗“史奴比”[Snoopy]同音——译注）

随着“史奴比队”的水手们进入戒备状态、在船上各就各位，一艘中国海军护卫舰出现在地平线上，护卫舰从“恶作剧礁”（Mischief Reef的直译，中国称之为美济礁）方向朝着切斯劳维尔号巡洋舰驶来，这就发生在上周。更令人震惊的是，从这艘护卫舰上起飞的一架中国直升机朝着美国巡洋舰径直飞来。

在发现中国军舰开始尾随时，英塞恩·吉安卡纳向那艘军舰发出讯息。

“这是美国海军舰艇进行防卫，”海军少尉安东尼·吉安卡纳(Anthony Giancana)在舰艇的驾驶台上对着无线电话机说，他在试图与那架直升机联系。“到121.5或243频率接收。”

随之而来的是不祥感，对方毫无反应。

在斯普拉特利群岛及帕拉塞尔群岛（Paracel Islands，中国称之为西沙群岛——译注）附近，围绕着珊瑚礁、沙洲和小砂礁的热带蔚蓝海洋上，中美两国在争夺太平洋的主导地位。从美济礁到斯卡伯勒浅滩(Scarborough Shoal，中国称之为黄岩岛——译注)，两国的海军几乎处于连续的警戒状态。在美济礁，中国不顾越南和菲律宾的主权主张，正在修建军事基地，而在远离大陆的有争议的斯卡伯勒浅滩，中国人正在建设和装备前哨。

(在中国南海的航行中，美海军士兵在清洗切斯劳维尔号甲板上的 MH-60 )

虽然南中国南延伸到距离中国大陆800多公里的地方，但北京已表示对其大部分拥有主权。紧张局势已变得愈发严峻，这预计是美国总统奥巴马与中国国家主席习近平本周在华盛顿会面时的主要议题。

南中国海是世界上最繁忙航道之一，美国的目标是保持它对所有的海上交通开放。但是，美国政府官员越来越担心，如果在未来几个月里，海牙的一个仲裁小组对菲律宾2013年提交的一起案子做出人们所预期的裁决的话，那里的紧张局势只会加剧，当时菲律宾指责中国对南海大部分水域提出“过度主权要求”。

两周前，在五角大楼，参谋长联席会议主席小约瑟夫·F·邓福德上将(Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr.)在与奥巴马的国家安全团队就中国在太平洋扩张问题召开会议的前一天，与美国太平洋司令部司令、海军上将小哈里·B·哈里斯(Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr.)以及国防部长阿什顿·B·卡特(Ashton B. Carter)在会议接待处进行了交流。

“你会为斯卡伯勒浅滩开战吗？”邓福德问哈里斯，他们的对话被记者听到了一点。海军上将哈里斯如何回答这个问题，记者没听见。

白宫和五角大楼已经明确表示，他们不希望与中国就一群无人居住的小岛打仗。但白宫也不想把南中国海割让给中国，如果北京在其目前的道路上走下去的话，这正是政府官员们担心将会发生的情况。奥巴马的国家情报主管詹姆斯·R·克拉珀(James R. Clapper)上个月对参议院军事委员会表示，到明年年初，中国将“拥有在该地区快速投射大量军事力量的显著能力”。

这会意味着，其他国家可能最终需要得到中国政府的允许，才能穿越这片繁忙的海洋。

所以，就目前而言，奥巴马政府正在派海军到斯普拉特利群岛、以及该海域其他有争议岛屿附近巡逻，以阐明这片海洋对所有人自由开放的观点。海军官员表示，在过去的一年里，美国在该海域进行了700多次巡逻。三周前，航空母舰约翰·C·斯坦尼斯号(John C. Stennis)和4艘美国军舰驶入南中国海进行例行演习，据五角大楼官员说，目的是传达美国是该地区的主要军事力量的信息。

上周在切斯劳维尔号上，由于中国直升机飞行员拒绝回答，时间随着紧张气氛的增长而显得越来越漫长。直升机在上面不停地盘旋，最终返回了中国护卫舰，而护卫舰则继续向美国军舰驶来。在中国直升机逼近时，指挥官科尔特·A·伦肖(Capt. Curt A. Renshaw)海军上校没来得及淋浴就跑到驾驶台上来，与军官们商量对策。

一天前，伦肖船长曾通过船上的内部通话系统提醒所有人，切斯劳维尔号将从斯普拉特利群岛经过，他告诉全体船员保持警觉，警惕可能发生的情况。他早就预期中国人会出现，近几个月来，北京方面对敢于进入南中国海的美国军舰采取了跟踪的做法。

(在切斯劳维尔号遇到一艘中国军舰时，25岁的英塞恩·安东尼·吉安卡纳查看了一本海军舰船的指南。)

在船长座椅旁的一个台子上有一本《简氏战舰》，页面打开在第144页，上面是“中国护卫舰”。

“你以前被跟踪过吗？”伦肖船长问导航员克莉斯汀·闵(Kristine Mun)海军少尉。他又转身向奈尔斯·李(Niles Li)海军少尉大声询问，中国直升机为何拒绝回答无线电发出的信息，李少尉是船上会说中文的几名军官之一。

最终，当中国护卫舰进入10公里距离以内、在地平线上用肉眼就清晰可见后，舰对舰无线电报机伴随着一秒一秒地报时，噼啪地响起了带着口音的英语。“美国海军62舰。.....这是中国海军575舰。”

于是，一场小心翼翼的外交舞蹈开始了。

“这是美国海军62舰。早上好，先生。今天是个海上的好日子。完毕。”

没有回应。

“这是美国海军62舰。早上好，先生。今天是个很好的出海日子。完毕。”

仍然没有回应。

伦肖船长转向李少尉说，“该你了。他们总不能假装听不懂中文。”

“中国海军575舰，这是美国海军62舰，”李少尉用中文说。“今天是海上航行的一个阳光灿烂的日子。完毕。”

好几分钟过去了。上午在甲板上执勤的安东尼·吉安卡纳海军少尉有点越来越坐立不安。“这点像比赛开始的那天，”他自言自语道。“我们已经完成了春训。”

突然，无线电报机再次噼啪作响起来，传来了护卫舰用中文的回应：“美国海军62舰，这是中国海军575舰。今天的天气真不错。很高兴在海上遇到你。”

李少尉仍用中文回应道：“这是美国海军62舰。天气的确不错。也很高兴遇到你。完毕。”

（在发现中国军舰开始尾随时，英塞恩·吉安卡纳向那艘军舰发出讯息。）

客套话交换完之后，中国军舰改用英语谈起了正事。“你们驶离母港后已经有多久了？完毕。”

伦肖船长立刻摇起头来。“不，我们不回答这个问题。我绝不会问他这个问题。”

吉安卡纳少尉再次拿起了无线电话机。“中国海军575舰，这里是美国海军62舰。我们不讨论我们航行时间表。不过，我们正在海上度过愉快的时间。完毕。”

两艘军舰就这样在海上对峙着，它们相互交流着有关天气的寒暄，而各自却携带着导弹、鱼雷和重型火炮。为了检验中国是否要公开跟踪，切斯劳维尔号转了个弯，船上的军官们站在一旁观望着。

之后，船上响起了来自伦肖船长另一名下级军官的喊声：“他刚转了弯，长官！”切斯劳维尔号现在有了一条尾巴。但会有多久呢？

显然，中国军舰也想知道这个问题的答案。

“美国海军62舰，这是中国海军575舰，”新的通话这样说道。“你要在海上继续长期航行吗？完毕。”

这又是一个不能回答的问题。把船只预期的航行时间告诉中国人将等于承认他们有知道的权利，伦肖船长说。而这不被认为是航行自由。

“这是美国海军62舰，”伦肖船长回应道。“收到，我们所有的航行都很短，因为我们喜欢我们在海上度过的时光，不管我们离开母港多久了。完毕。”

正像所发生的那样，中国军舰已有了一个现成的答案。

“美国海军62舰，这是中国海军575舰，“对方回答道。“明白，我将在未来几天与你一起航行。完毕。”

这是在周二。周三，一艘中国驱逐舰替换了那艘护卫舰，并一直跟踪美国军舰，直到周四午夜美国军舰离开南中国海为止。

Patrolling Disputed Waters

U.S. and China Jockey for Dominance

(By HELENE COOPER, MARCH 30, 2016)

ABOARD THE U.S.S. CHANCELLORSVILLE, in the South China Sea — The Navy cruiser was in disputed waters off the Spratly Islands when the threat warning sounded over the ship’s intercom: “Away the Snoopie team. ... Away the Snoopie team.”

As the sailors of the “Snoopie team” went on alert and took up positions throughout the ship, a Chinese naval frigate appeared on the horizon, bearing down on the cruiser Chancellorsville last week from the direction of Mischief Reef. More alarming, a Chinese helicopter that had taken off from the frigate was heading straight for the American cruiser.

“This is U.S. Navy warship on guard,” Ensign Anthony Giancana said into his radio from the ship’s bridge, trying to contact the helicopter. “Come up on Frequency 121.5 or 243.”

Ominously, there was no response.

Here in the hot azure waters off the Spratly and Paracel Islands — which encompass reefs, banks and cays — the United States and China are jockeying for dominance in the Pacific. From Mischief Reef, where China is building a military base in defiance of claims by Vietnam and the Philippines, to Scarborough Shoal, where the Chinese are building and equipping outposts on disputed territory far from the mainland, the two naval forces are on an almost continuous state of alert.

(Crew members washed an MH-60 on the flight deck of the Chancellorsville as it sailed the South China Sea. )

Although the South China Sea stretches some 500 miles from mainland China, Beijing has claimed most of it. Tensions have risen sharply, and the topic is expected to dominate President Obama’s meeting in Washington this week with the Chinese president, Xi Jinping.

America’s goal is to keep the South China Sea, one of the world’s busiest shipping lanes, open to all maritime traffic. But administration officials are increasingly worried that tensions will only worsen if an arbitration panel in The Hague rules as expected in the coming months on a 2013 case brought by the Philippines, which has accused China of making an “excessive claim” to most of the sea.

At the Pentagon two weeks ago, the day before a meeting of Mr. Obama’s national security team to discuss Chinese expansion in the Pacific, Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was talking with Adm. Harry B. Harris Jr., the commander of the United States Pacific Command, in the reception area of Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter’s office.

“Would you go to war over Scarborough Shoals?” General Dunford asked Admiral Harris, in a conversation overheard by a reporter. If Admiral Harris responded, it could not be heard.

The White House and the Pentagon have made it clear that they do not want a war with China over a group of uninhabited islands.

But neither does the White House want to cede the South China Sea to China, which is what administration officials fear will happen if Beijing continues on its current course. James R. Clapper, Mr. Obama’s director of national intelligence, told the Senate Armed Services Committee last month that by early next year China would “have significant capacity to quickly project substantial military power to the region.”

That could mean that other countries might eventually need Beijing’s permission to traverse the heavily trafficked sea.

And so for the moment, the Obama administration is sending Navy patrols through the Spratlys and other disputed island chains in the region, to drive home the message that the sea is free to all. Some 700 American patrols have gone through in the past year, Navy officials say. Three weeks ago the aircraft carrier John C. Stennis and four other American warships sailed into the South China Sea for routine exercises, meant to convey the message, Pentagon officials said, that the United States is the dominant military power in the region.

Aboard the Chancellorsville last week, the minutes — and the tension — stretched out as the Chinese helicopter pilot refused to answer. The helicopter kept circling and eventually flew back to the Chinese frigate, which then continued toward the American warship. At the helm, Capt. Curt A. Renshaw, who had skipped his morning shower to race up to the bridge when the Chinese helicopter approached, huddled with his officers.

The day before, Captain Renshaw had warned the entire ship over the intercom that the Chancellorsville would be transiting through the Spratlys, and told the crew members to be on their toes and alert to trouble. He had been expecting the Chinese to show up — Beijing, in recent months, has taken to shadowing American warships that have dared to enter the South China Sea.

(Ensign Anthony Giancana, 25, of Minneapolis, searched a maritime guide to naval vessels as the Chancellorsville encountered a Chinese frigate. )

On a stand near the captain’s chair, a copy of “Jane’s Fighting Ships” was open to Page 144: “China Frigates.”

“You’ve ever been shadowed before?” Captain Renshaw asked Ensign Kristine Mun, a navigations officer. He turned to Ensign Niles Li, one of several officers who speak Chinese, and wondered aloud at the Chinese helicopter’s refusal to answer the radio message.

Finally, when the Chinese frigate was six miles away and clearly visible to the naked eye on the horizon, the ship-to-ship radio crackled with the sounds of accented English. “U.S. Navy Warship 62. ... This is Chinese Warship 575.”

And so began an elaborate diplomatic dance.

“This is U.S. Warship 62. Good morning, sir. It is a pleasant day at sea, over.”

No response.

“This is U.S. Warship 62. Good morning, sir. It is a pleasant day to be at sea, over.”

Still no response.

Captain Renshaw turned to Ensign Li. “You’re up,” he said. “They can’t pretend they don’t speak Chinese.”

“Chinese Warship 575, this is U.S. Warship 62,” Ensign Li said in Chinese. “Today is a sunny day for a sea voyage, over.”

More minutes ticked by. Ensign Anthony Giancana, the junior officer on deck for the morning, was getting antsy. “This is like Opening Day,” he said to no one in particular. “We’ve done spring training.”

Suddenly, the radio crackled again as the frigate responded in Chinese: “U.S. Warship 62, this is Chinese Warship 575. Today’s weather is great. It is a pleasure to meet you at sea.”

Ensign Li responded, also in Chinese: “This is U.S. Warship 62. The weather is indeed great. It is a pleasure to meet you, too, over.”

(Ensign Giancana directed a message to the Chinese frigate that had begun shadowing the Chancellorsville. )

Preliminaries dispensed with, the Chinese ship got down to business, switching to English. “How long have you been since departing from your home port? Over.”

Captain Renshaw was immediately shaking his head. “No, we’re not answering that. I would never ask him that.”

Ensign Giancana picked up the radio again. “Chinese Warship 575, this is U.S. Navy Warship 62. We do not talk about our schedules. But we are enjoying our time at sea, over.”

And on it went as the two warships, each loaded with missiles, torpedoes and heavy artillery, confronted each other with an exchange of weather pleasantries at sea. Testing whether the Chinese were openly following, the Chancellorsville made a turn, and its officers stood back and waited.

A shout came from another one of Captain Renshaw’s junior officers: “He just turned, sir!” The Chancellorsville now had a tail. But for how long?

Apparently the Chinese ship wanted an answer to that question as well.

“U.S. Navy Warship 62, this is Chinese Navy Warship 575,” came a new message. “Do you continue to have long-term voyage at sea? Over.”

Another no-no. Telling the Chinese the intended duration of the trip could be an inherent acknowledgment that they had the right to know, Captain Renshaw said. And that is not considered freedom of navigation.

“This is U.S. Navy Warship 62,” Captain Renshaw responded. “Roger, all of our voyages are short because we enjoy our time at sea no matter how long we are away from home. Over.”

As it happened, the Chinese ship had a ready answer for that.

“U.S. Navy Warship 62, this is Chinese Navy Warship 575,” came the reply. “Copy that I will be staying along with you for the following days. Over.”

That was Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Chinese frigate was replaced by a destroyer, which followed the Navy warship until midnight Thursday, when the American vessel exited the South China Sea.

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