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”。