又是一年“九一八”。
It is another “September 18th”.
“九一八，九一八，从那个悲惨的时候，脱离了我的家乡，抛弃那无尽的宝藏，流浪！流浪！”一首《松花江上》，满是山河沦陷的痛楚，更饱含亿万中国人民对侵略者的仇恨。
“September 18th, September 18th, from that miserable time on, I was forced to leave my hometown and abandon the endless treasure. Wandering! Wandering!” read the lyrics of the song “On Songhua River”, a patriotic song about China's World War II-era invasion by Japan. It’s a song full of pain for losing Chinese territories, and full of the hundreds of millions of Chinese people's hatred of the invader.
历经14年，千千万万中华儿女团结一心共御外侮，以“誓与山河共存亡”的坚定决心、“愿拼热血卫吾华”的不屈意志、“一寸河山一寸血”的巨大牺牲，终将中国人民抗日战争的伟大胜利永远地载入中华民族的史册、人类和平的史册。
For 14 years, millions of Chinese people united as one to resist the outside bullying, with the firm determination to defend national mountains and rivers till last breath, the unyielding will to shed blood for the revolutionary cause, and the enormous sacrifice of defending every inch of the motherland till the last drop of blood. The great victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression will be forever recorded in the annals of the Chinese nation and the annals of human peace.
87年了。自“那个悲惨的时候”至今，已经整整87年了；就算是从那来之不易的胜利时刻算起，也已经73年了。再长寿的老人，也耗不过时间的无情流逝。东北抗联后人、南京大屠杀亲历者、“慰安妇”受害者……那些曾见证抗战历史、世界反法西斯战争历史的人，正在离我们远去。历史的证人终将离去，但历史的记忆永远不会被遗忘。
It has been 87 years since that “miserable period”, and it has been 73 years since the hard-won victory moment. But even people blessed with a long life can’t survive the ruthless passage of time. Descendants of the Northeast United Resistance Army, witnesses of the Nanjing Massacre, victims known as “comfort women”… Those who have witnessed China’s War of Resistance and the Global War against Fascism are leaving us and will eventually pass away, but historical memories will never be forgotten.
历史是一个国家和民族最厚重的共同记忆，它记录曾经的苦难与奋斗，昭示未来的光明与辉煌。铭记历史，不是要深陷于仇恨的泥潭，而是要以历史映照未来，避免悲剧重演，探索通往和平与发展的路径。
History is the most solid common memory of a country and a nation. It records the sufferings and struggles of the past and shows the light and glory of the future. Bearing history in mind doesn’t mean to get trapped in the quagmire of hatred, but means to enlighten the future with history, so as to avoid the recurrence of tragedies and explore the paths to peace and development.
自1995年“村山谈话”发表以来，历任日本首相均在日本战败日的致辞中提及日本对亚洲各国的战争责任，并重申“不战誓言”。直到2013年，日本首相安倍晋三在战败日的致辞中取消了“加害”责任和“不战誓言”的表述，迄今已连续6年试图模糊日本的“加害”责任。如此言行，不能不引起包括中国在内的东亚国家的忧虑。因为，当“历史问题”还远远没有成为历史，遗忘便意味着背叛，也意味着历史随时可能重演。
Since the publication of Murayama Statement in 1995, successive Japanese prime ministers had always mentioned Japan’s responsibility for war against Asian countries in their speeches on Japan’s Day of Defeat, and reiterated the “no-war vows”. Until 2013, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe deleted the expressions of “doing harm” and “no-war vows” from his speech on Japan’s Day of Defeat. So far, he has tried to blur Japan's responsibility for “doing harm” for six consecutive years. Such words and deeds worry East Asian countries including China, because when "historical problems" are still too recent to be considered history, forgetting means betrayal, even meaning that the miserable history can be repeated at any time.
今年8月28日，日本政府在其2018年版《防卫白皮书》中继续渲染日本周边安保环境日趋严峻，鼓吹“中国威胁论”，意图为安倍政府制定新版《防卫计划大纲》和加速军事扩张铺路。
On August 28th of this year, the Japanese government continued to render the security environment around Japan increasingly deteriorating in Defense of Japan 2018 and preached the “China threat theory”, with the intention of paving way for the Abe government to formulate a new version of National Defense Program Guidelines and accelerate military expansion.
可搭载战机的大型水面舰艇、快速发展的水面舰队、不断增强的导弹防御系统、新增的“日版海军陆战队”水陆机动团，以及在战略上巩固日美军事同盟的同时尝试向北约靠拢……
Its actions include developing large surface ships with jet fighters aboard, rapidly developing surface fleet, reinforcing its missile defense system, establishing a new amphibious mobile regiment (dubbed as “Japan’s Marine Corps”), and consolidating the Japan-US Security Alliance from a strategic perspective while attempting to move closer to NATO.
近年来，日本明里暗里加速军事扩张步伐，其防务开支更是在“七连涨”后创下历史新高，这一切不能不引起世人高度警惕。
In recent years, Japan has accelerated its speed of military expansion both overtly and covertly, and its defense spending has hit a record high after “seven consecutive increases”. All this puts the world on high alert.
二战结束以来，世界一直处于“战后时期”——虽然和平与发展成为时代主题，但战争产生的土壤并没有被彻底清除，右翼势力和军国主义仍然时时蠢蠢欲动，恐怖主义和局部冲突乃至战争仍然威胁着世界的和平与安宁。
Since the end of the Second World War, the world has been in the “post-war period”. Although the "peace and development" has become the theme of the times, the seeds for war haven’t been completely eradicated; the right-wing forces and militarists are still eager to act; terrorism, local conflicts, and even wars are still threatening the peace and tranquility of the world.
牢记历史，是为了开创未来；不忘战争，是为了维护和平。我们永远不会忘记先辈们用鲜血换来的和平，但也深知，唯有发展才能巩固和平的基础。
Keeping history in mind means creating a better future; not forgetting the war means maintaining peace. We will never forget the peace that our ancestors secured at the cost of their blood and lives. Meanwhile, we are also well aware that only development can consolidate the foundation of peace.
今年是中日和平友好条约缔结40周年。我们记得87年前苦难创痛和浴血奋战的开端，也同样记得40年前这份条约签署时两国人民对未来的希冀。
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Chinese-Japanese Treaty of Peace and Friendship. We still remember the beginning of the bloody battles and suffering 87 years ago, and also the hopes of the two peoples for the future when the treaty was signed 40 years ago.
今年年初以来，日本政府在对华关系上展现出一些积极姿态。在双方共同努力下，中日关系改善发展势头持续增强。“纪念中日和平友好条约缔结40周年中日大学生千人交流大会”“2018年中国节”……一项项友好纪念活动的开展，让中日两国青少年在交流中建立友谊，也为两国关系的发展夯实民意基础。
Since the beginning of this year, the Japanese government has shown some positive attitude in its relations with China. Thanks to the joint efforts of both sides, the improvement of China-Japan relations has continued to gain momentum. The launch of friendly commemorative events, including the exchange conference tended by more than 1,000 Chinese and Japanese university or college students and the 2018 China Festival to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Chinese-Japanese Treaty of Peace and Friendship, have enabled young people from China and Japan to build friendship through exchanges and have consolidated the foundation of public opinion for the development of bilateral relations.
“和平犹如空气和阳光，受益而不觉，失之则难存。”历史虽在远去，但这恰是我们时常回忆的理由。
“Peace is like air and sunshine, which are often taken for granted, but when theyvanish, people can hardly survive.” History is unceasingly passing by, which is just the very reason for us to recall it now and then.
铭记“九一八”，让我们对捍卫和平多一份自觉与担当。
Let us bear “September 18th Incident” in mind! Let us have more self-consciousness and sense of responsibility for defending peace.
