(MUSIC)
In recent programs, we talked about how the rise of Fascist leaders in Europe threatened American neutrality in the nineteen thirties.
(SOUND: Adolf Hitler)
Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party in Germany created the most obvious threat. But there was also Benito Mussolini in Italy and Francisco Franco in Spain. These leaders challenged both the idea of democracy and the security of some of America's closest allies.
德国的希特勒和纳粹党带来的威胁最明显，而意大利的墨索里尼和西班牙的佛朗哥政权也不能忽视。这些法西斯领导人给民主理念和美国一些亲密盟国的安全带来了挑战。
Hitler's invasion of Poland and the spread of war in Europe in nineteen thirty-nine made Americans wonder if they could remain neutral much longer.
1939年，希特勒入侵波兰，战火在欧洲的蔓延使美国人开始思考，他们的中立政策还能持续多久。
The United States would finally go to war against Hitler and the other Axis nations. But its first battle would not be in Europe at all. Instead, the United States would enter World War Two following a surprise attack by Japan on the large American naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
美国最终将与希特勒和其他轴心国成员作战，但它的第一场战役却没有发生在欧洲，相反，美国是在日本突袭位于夏威夷珍珠港的美国大型海军基地之后才参加二战的。
Relations between the United States and Japan had grown steadily worse throughout the nineteen thirties. Both nations were important industrial powers. But they had very different ideas about the economic and political future of East Asia, especially China.
上个世纪三十年代，美日关系持续恶化。两国都是重要的工业国，但它们对东亚，特别是对中国的经济和政治未来所持的观点截然不同。
(MUSIC)
Until the late eighteen hundreds, Japan had been a nation with ancient political traditions and little contact with the Western world.
十九世纪末之前，日本一直沿袭古老的政治传统，与西方世界几乎没有接触。
Visits by Commodore Matthew Perry and American warships helped open Japan to trade with the United States and other nations in the eighteen fifties. And in the years that followed, Japan took major steps toward becoming a modern industrial nation.
十九世纪五十年代，美国海军战舰在舰长马太.佩里的领导下打开了日本与美国等国家贸易往来的大门。在此后的几十年里，日本实行大规模改革，向现代化工业国转变。
By the nineteen twenties and thirties, Japan was a strong country. But it lacked oil, rubber and other natural resources of its own. For this reason, Japanese political leaders looked with envy at the Dutch, French and British colonies across Southeast Asia and the Pacific. And Japanese business leaders saw huge markets for their products in nearby countries like Korea and China.
到了二十世纪二、三十年代，日本已经成为一个强大的国家。但日本缺乏石油、橡胶和其它自然资源。因此，日本政治领袖们看着东南亚及太平洋地区的荷兰、法国和英国殖民地感到非常眼红。而且，日本商人发现，朝鲜、中国这样的周边国家是销售日本产品的巨大市场。
Japan's desire to use East Asia to gain natural resources and sell manufactured products was in direct conflict with American plans for Asia. This was especially true concerning China. Washington created an "Open Door" policy toward China. It wanted to keep China's natural resources and markets free from control by Japan or any other nation.
日本想利用东亚来获得自然资源并销售日本产品的愿望与美国在亚洲的计划发生了直接冲突，这一点在中国体现得尤其明显。美国提出对中国实行“门户开放”的政策，力图使中国的自然资源和市场不被日本或任何单一国家所控制。
(MUSIC)
For this reason, Americans were very concerned when Japanese forces invaded the Manchuria area of China in nineteen thirty-one. And they watched with great interest the efforts of Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek to oppose the Japanese invaders.
因此，1931年日本侵入中国满洲地区时，美国非常关注，密切注视着中国领导人蒋介石的抗日举措。
The United States was also very concerned about protecting its imports of oil, tin and rubber from Southeast Asia. This area of the world was a major supplier of these resources in the nineteen thirties. The Middle East had not yet become a leading producer of oil.
美国关心的另外一个问题是如何保护它从东南亚进口石油，锡铁和橡胶的渠道，因为这一地区在上世纪三十年代是这些自然资源的一个主要供应产地。当时，中东还没有成为世界上最重要的石油产地。
In these ways, the United States and Japan were competing for the same resources and Asian markets. However, there also was a good deal of trade between the two nations. In fact, Japan depended on the United States for most of its metal, copper and oil.
由于这些原因，美国和日本为获得同样的自然资源和市场而展开竞争。然而，美日之间也存在大量的贸易往来，事实上，日本的大部分金属、铜和石油都要从美国进口。
This trade with Tokyo became a major concern for President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Congress in nineteen thirty-seven.
1937年，与日本的贸易往来成为罗斯福总统和美国国会关心的主要问题。
(MUSIC)
In the summer of that year, more Japanese troops moved into China. They quickly captured much of the Chinese coast.
这年夏天，日本派更多兵力侵略中国，并很快占领了中国的沿海地区。
Much of the metal, oil, and other materials that Japan used for its war effort in China came from the United States. Americans did not like selling Japan materials to use against China. But the trade was legal because of a nineteen eleven agreement between Tokyo and Washington.
日本侵略中国所需要的大部分金属、石油和其它物资来自美国。美国人不愿意把这些东西卖给日本，再看着日本靠这些东西去侵略中国。但是，美日之间的这种贸易是有法律保障的，因为1911年两国签订过协议。
However, the American government told Japan in nineteen thirty-nine that it would end the earlier agreement. It would no longer sell Japan materials that could be used for war.
美国1939年告诉日本说，美国将结束这一协定，不再向日本出售用于侵略战争的物资。
(MUSIC)
Washington's decision made the Japanese government think again about its expansionist plans. And the announcement a month later of a non-aggression treaty between Germany and the Soviet Union gave Tokyo even more cause for concern. The Soviet Union could be a major opponent of Japanese expansion in East Asia. And it appeared free from the threat of war in Europe.
这个决定迫使日本政府重新考虑其扩张计划。一个月后，苏联和德国签订互不侵犯条约，使日本更加担心。因为苏联可能成为日本在东亚扩张的重要阻力，而且苏联似乎并没有受到欧洲战争的影响。
These two events helped moderates in the Japanese government to gain more influence over foreign policy. A moderate government took power in January nineteen-forty.
这两件事帮助温和派在日本政府的外交政策中获得了更多发言权。1940年1月，一个温和派的日本政府上台了。
However, this period of moderation in Tokyo did not last long.
然而，日本的这一温和时期并没有持续多久。
(MUSIC)
In the spring of nineteen forty, Germany launched its blitzkrieg, or lightning invasion, of Europe. The Nazis captured Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and finally France.
1940年春天，德国在欧洲发动闪电战，先后占领了丹麦、挪威、荷兰、比利时、卢森堡，并最终占领了法国。
Extremists in the Japanese government saw the German victory as their chance to launch their own attack on European colonies in Asia. They quickly began negotiations with Hitler to form a new alliance. And within months, militant leaders overthrew the moderate government in Tokyo.
日本政府中的极端主义分子在德国的胜利中看到了他们向欧洲列强在亚洲殖民地发动进攻的机会。他们迅速与希特勒谈判，成立了一个新的同盟，在此后的几个月里，日本军国主义领导人把温和派政府赶下了台。
The new Japanese government was headed by a moderate, Prince Konoye. But the minister of war was an expansionist, General Tojo. Tokyo wasted no time in taking action. It forced France to give Japan permission to occupy northern Indochina. And Tokyo also demanded that Britain close the Burma Road to the Chinese city then known as Chungking.
新一届日本政府由温和派的公爵近卫文磨担任首相，但战争部长却是一个扩张主义分子--东条英机。日本立即采取行动，强迫法国允许日军占领北印度支那，并要求英国关闭通往中国重庆的滇缅公路。
(SOUND)
The Burma Road was a major route by which the United States was supplying China with munitions as part of the Lend-Lease Act.
根据美国的租借法，美国向中国提供武器弹药援助，滇缅公路是运输这些弹药的重要通道。
These events caused relations between Tokyo and Washington to become even worse.
这些事件使美日两国关系进一步恶化。
In the second half of nineteen forty, President Roosevelt banned the export of metal and oil products to Japan. His administration also lent money to China.
1940年下半年，罗斯福总统禁止美国商人向日本出口金属和石油。美国政府还向中国提供贷款。
(MUSIC)
America began to supply Chiang Kai Shek's government with a fleet of P-40 fighter airplanes with volunteer pilots, led by Army aviator Claire Chennault, to train Chinese pilots. The squadron became known as the Flying Tigers.
美国还开始为蒋介石政府提供P-40型战斗机，并派志愿飞行员到中国训练飞行员。这些志愿者由美国空军飞行教官克莱尔.陈纳德指挥，这支飞行中队被命名为“飞虎队”。
American representatives quietly began to meet with British and Dutch officials, to discuss joint defense plans for possible Japanese attacks in the western Pacific.
美国代表还悄悄地与英国和荷兰政府官员会面，讨论一旦日本向西太平洋发动进攻，如何部署联合防卫计划。
Washington and Tokyo held long negotiations in nineteen forty-one. The American officials hoped the negotiations might delay Japan from launching an attack to the south. They also thought that a delay might give more moderate leaders in Japan a chance to gain more influence. And for a time, the American plan worked. Japan did not make new acts of aggression.
1941年，美日两国进行了漫长的谈判。美国官员希望利用会谈尽可能拖延日本向南发动侵略，他们还希望日本政府中的温和派能利用这段时间获得更多的影响力。美国这一计划似乎一度奏效，日本没有发动新的侵略。
(MUSIC)
Again, events in Europe caused this situation to change. Nazi Germany attacked the Soviet Union in the middle of nineteen forty-one. This prevented Moscow from doing any fighting on its eastern borders. So Japanese troops were free to invade southern Indochina.
然而，欧洲局势的变化再次改变了亚洲的局面。1941年夏天，纳粹德国进攻苏联，使苏联无暇在其东部边界作战，所以日军就趁机侵入南印度支那。
President Roosevelt reacted to Japan's invasion of Indochina by taking three major steps. First, he took control of all Japanese money in the United States. Second, he brought the armed forces of the Philippines under American command. And, third, he closed the Panama Canal to Japanese shipping.
对日本新的侵略行径，罗斯福总统采取了三项重要措施：一，控制日本在美国的全部资金；二，将菲律宾的军事力量交由美国指挥；三，禁止日本船只通过巴拿马运河。
Once again, a conflict developed between moderates and extremists in the Japanese government. More moderate leaders such as Prime Minister Konoye urged one more effort to reach an agreement with the United States. But the Japanese army and navy believed that the time had come to go to war to end American and European power in East Asia forever.
日本政府中的温和派和极端分子再次发生冲突，包括近卫首相在内的更多温和派力主再次尝试同美国达成协议，但是，日本陆军和海军领导人则认为，通过战争永远结束美国和欧洲在东亚势力的时机已经成熟。
Negotiations between Japan and the United States continued through the final months of nineteen forty-one. But the two nations were on the edge of war. They were as close to hostilities as Washington was with the Nazi government in Berlin.
美日两国谈判一直持续到1941年最后几个月，但两国已经处于战争边缘，美日和美德关系一样，战火一触即发。
(MUSIC)
American military officials captured secret messages from Japan during this time. They learned that Tokyo was planning an attack of some kind unless the United States suddenly changed its policies. However, the American officials could not discover exactly where or how the attack would be made.
在此期间，美军官员获取了日本的秘密情报，得知日本的打算是：除非美国政府突然改变政策，否则日本就要向美国发动袭击。然而，美国官员无法确定日本将在什么地方，以何种方式发动袭击。
Almost everyone in Washington expected that the Japanese would attack south of Japan. They were wrong. The military leaders in Tokyo were planning a surprise attack on America's main Pacific military base, at Pearl Harbor. That will be our story next week.
在华盛顿，几乎所有人都以为日本会向其南面发动进攻，但他们错了。东京的军方领导人正计划向美国位於太平洋的重要海军基地----珍珠港发动突然袭击。
(MUSIC)
Our program was written by David Jarmul. You can find our series online with transcripts, MP3s, podcasts and pictures at 51voa.com. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter at VOA Learning English. I'm Steve Ember, inviting you to join us again next week for THE MAKING OF A NATION – American history in VOA Special English.
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This was program #190
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