ジム・ウェッブ米上院議員は１９日、米国による沖縄・尖閣諸島の防衛義務を明記した２０１３会計年度（１２年１０月～１３年９月）国防権限法案が上下両院で合意に達したことを受け、特別声明を発表した。
声明は、尖閣条項について「日本の施政権を脅かすいかなる試みにも、米国が毅然（きぜん）として対抗する姿勢を示したものだ」と表明。その上で「過去数年間、中国は尖閣諸島の領有権を主張して東シナや（ベトナムとフィリピンなどと領有権問題のある）南シナ海で攻撃的な活動を強めてきた」と中国を名指しで批判した。
また、「米議会は、米国が尖閣諸島が日本の施政権下にあることを認め、この立場が、いかなる恫喝（どうかつ）や強制、軍事行動によって代わるものではないことを明確にするものだ」とした。
米政府も、尖閣諸島が日米安保条約の対象と明言しているが、公文書を含めて国防の大枠を決める重要法案に明文化されるのは初めて。日本にとっては、これまでで最も強い形で同盟国の後ろ盾を得た格好だ。
ウェッブ氏は、オバマ大統領に近い上院の重鎮。
Senator Webb: Conference Report on Defense Bill Supports Troops,
Strategic Posture Overseas
source : 2012.12.20 PACIFIC NEWS CENTER (ボタンクリックで引用記事が開閉)
Senator Jim Webb (D-Va.) voiced strong support Wednesday for the conference report of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013. The legislation was reported out of the Senate-House conference committee last night and is expected to pass both houses of Congress this week.
“The conference report for the defense authorization bill demonstrates a strong and consistent bipartisan commitment to supporting our troops, their families, and critical defense programs,” said Senator Webb, who is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and chair of its Personnel Subcommittee. “Overall, the bill will sustain important quality-of-life programs for our people and their families, address the needs of our warfighters, and sharpen the Defense Department’s proper focus on advancing our national-security interests in the Asia Pacific region. We will also strengthen the federal government’s stewardship of taxpayer dollars during military contingencies overseas.”
The conference report includes several provisions championed by Senator Webb, including a unanimously approved provision to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to Japan under Article V of the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security, and to firmly counter any attempts to challenge Japan’s administration of the Senkaku Islands.
“Over the past several years, China has taken increasingly aggressive actions to assert its claim over the Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea and in a broad expanse of the South China Sea,” said Senator Webb, who has expressed numerous concerns over maritime territorial disputes in this region for more than 16 years. “With passage of the conference report, the U.S. Congress will unequivocally state that the United States acknowledges the administration of Japan over the Senkaku Islands, and that this position will not be changed through threats, coercion, or military action.”
The report also authorizes a Marine Corps military construction project for aircraft ramp parking at Andersen Air Base on Guam and use of FY 2013 funds for the planning and design of other projects. Senator Webb has consistently supported a faster timeline to realign Marines to Guam and to reduce the number of Marines on Okinawa as soon as possible. Though a legally mandated master plan for realignment that identifies costs, schedules and other requirements has not been submitted by the Department of Defense, Senator Webb has expressed support for “independent Marine Corps projects on Guam that serve important training and operational mission in their own right.”
The report establishes cost-sharing rates under the TRICARE pharmacy benefits program for FY 2013 and limits any annual hikes in pharmacy copayments to increases in retiree cost-of-living adjustments between fiscal years 2014 to 2022. It also authorizes a 1.7 percent across-the-board pay raise for all members of the uniformed services. “Personnel and health-care provisions in the conference report for this year’s bill reflect what I have long called our moral contract with our men and women in uniform and their families,” Senator Webb said. “It was a great honor for me to fight hard on their behalf chairing the Personnel Subcommittee for the past three years.”
In addition, the conference bill includes provisions that directly benefit Virginians, including:
· Repealing flawed provisions in the FY 2012 NDAA relating to depot-level maintenance retroactive to date of enactment; this will benefit Virginia’s shipbuilding and ship-repair industries and workers;
· Funding the construction of 10 U.S. Navy ships, with advance procurement funding authorized to support buying an additional Virginia-class submarine in FY 2014 and a 10-ship, multi-year procurement contract for DDG-51 guided-missile destroyers that should generate enough savings to purchase an added ship in FY 2014.
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