Sept. 11, two years on

同時多発テロから2年

The United States is a very different country. Some of the most visible scars of Sept. 11, 2001, have healed, but the psychological wounds are deep and easily reopened. Americans and their government have a keener sense of the suspicion, anger and hostility that America faces. Whether they appreciate the degree to which this is a response to U.S. behavior is another matter. Nonetheless, the new understanding of the gap between Americans' image of themselves and that held by much of the rest of the world is perhaps the most important change in the United States since Sept. 11.

That new understanding is reciprocal: Other nations have a better appreciation of America's place in the world and the extraordinary gap that exists between its role and that of all other states. As a candidate, Mr. George W. Bush declared that he would end American arrogance and his administration would practice a more "humble" foreign policy. As president, Mr. Bush has overseen the unparalleled demonstration of U.S. strength and use of its military.

And yet, the most important lesson of the aftermath of Sept. 11 is that U.S. predominance is not enough to shape the world. For all the complaints of U.S. "unilateralism," it has become readily apparent that no nation, not even the United States, can combat the new security threats alone.

The growing recognition that terrorism is a "common" threat is one of the most significant changes of the last two years. Too often, the problem was dismissed as "another nation's concern." The governments of Saudi Arabia and Indonesia are the two most prominent cases of belated recognition. Sadly, it took bloody tragedies to change their minds.

The Japanese have had to acknowledge the growing menace of the world in which they live, and the connections between seemingly distant threats like al-Qaeda and more immediate ones like North Korea's attempts to develop weapons of mass destruction.

Suddenly, there is no "opting out" of the fight to create a more stable and secure world.

But the world will not be rid of terrorism even if all governments boost their military spending. Although there must be military and law enforcement dimensions to the fight, the real battle is for the "hearts and minds" of the developing world.

Millions of people must have hope that the future will offer them a better life. In the absence of such hope, there is only despair and anger, which will provide endless fodder for the terrorists. That requires a more serious attempt to better the lives of the world's poorest inhabitants through aid, assistance and development.

The aftermath of Sept. 11 has yielded a new sensitivity to the feelings of Muslims worldwide. It has become increasingly apparent that Islamic communities are having difficulties adjusting to modernity. That transition must be smoothed; a readiness to appreciate the particulars of Islamic life is important.

Renewed attention to the demands for justice in the Middle East is another outgrowth of the 9/11 tumult, whether those demands involve a settlement of the Arab-Israeli conflict or efforts to end corruption and authoritarianism in the region. While we are no closer to solving these problems, the willingness to scrutinize the comfortable assumptions that guided thinking about international relations is an invaluable start.

The Japan Times Weekly
Sept. 20, 2003
(C) All rights reserved

      米国では、事件の目に見える傷跡は治っても、心理的な傷は癒えない。米国人が自国に持つイメージと、その他の国民が米国に持つイメージの間に大きなギャップがある。この2年間で最も重要な変化は、このことに米国人自身が気づき始めたことだろう。

      国際社会も、世界における米国の特別な地位と、米国の役割と他国の役割の大きな差を認識している。

      同時多発テロ後の最も重要な教訓は、強力な米国も単独では世界の安全保障への脅威に対抗できないということだ。

      テロは世界共通の脅威だということが次第に理解されている。サウジアラビア、インドネシアではテロ事件が起きるまで問題への対応が遅れた。

      日本は高まる安全保障の脅威に直面し、アルカイダと北朝鮮の大量破壊兵器開発の脅威が無関係でないことを認識している。

      すべての政府が軍事支出を増強しても、テロは根絶できない。本当の戦いは途上国国民に生活への希望を持たせることだ。そのために援助、開発が必要になる。

      同時多発テロ以来、世界的にイスラム教徒の立場を尊重する動きがある。中東で、アラブ・イスラエルの紛争に関連して正義への要求に応えようという動きも同時多発テロ以降の変化だ。これらの問題は解決には程遠いが、国際関係についての旧来の考えを見直すことが重要である。