上世纪三十年代，英国人声称“我们的和平来临了”

上世纪三十年代，日益紧张的欧亚局势给美国带来了严重的挑战。绝大多数美国人反对法西斯及其军事领导人控制德国、意大利、日本和其他国家的政权，但他们不愿意采取任何的行动来阻止这一局势的发展。美国人不想再卷入另一场世界大战，而且他们要求富兰克林.罗斯福总统和国会议员们在国际事务上保持中立。然而，德国和日本的侵略，最终迫使美国人必须在热爱民主与祈求和平之间作出选择。

对美国中立政策的第一次挑战来始于1935年，这一年，意大利法西斯军队入侵埃塞俄比亚。

但，罗斯福根本就没有考虑什么中立。他对他的助手们说，“意大利正在轰炸埃塞俄比亚，这是一场战争。”他强烈批评意大利法西斯领导人墨索里尼。他下令禁止向意大利和埃塞俄比亚输送武器，而且他还要求美国人不要把石油和其他战略物资出售给意大利。罗斯福阻止向意大利出售石油和其他物资的努力并没有取得成功，但白宫的这一努力在国际联盟对意大利采取经济制裁方面则扮演着重要的角色。

不到二年后，西班牙发生内战。由弗朗西斯科.佛朗哥领导的法西斯试图推翻马德里的民主政府。一些美国人前往西班牙，参加西班牙的民主政府的军队对抗佛朗哥，但罗斯福和美国国会则同意在官方仍然对西班牙的冲突保持中立，如此一来，罗斯福就满足了美国人希望保持中立避免战争的愿望。但就他自己而言，他对欧洲局势深表忧虑。在他写给驻法国大使的一封信中，他这样写道：“没有人明白，在你我有生之年，欧洲局势之黑暗已经到了前所未有的地步。”

对美国中立政策发起挑战的另一事件来自亚洲。日本于1937年7月向中国发动新的侵略，在一个月时间里，日本就攻占了当时的北平(现在的北京)和天津。美国长期以来支持中国的民族主义政府，许多美国人对日本再次侵略中国表示非常的气愤，但罗斯福和他的政府对日本的侵略并没有采取有力的行动。其中一个原因就是，当时美国的海军力量非常薄弱，无法阻止日本在数千里之外亚洲的侵略，而且，无论是罗斯福还是国会，都不想首先破坏美国的中立政策。

富兰克林.罗斯福在与他的朋友进行私人谈话时清楚地表明，他非常清楚阿道夫.希特勒以及其他法西斯将给世界的和平带来多么严重的威胁，他认为，如果世界许多国家的民主受到威胁，那么美国就不可能永远保持中立。然而，罗斯福对于法西斯给世界所带来的威胁，并没有教育他的国人，相反，他通常是按照大多数美国人的意愿行事，让美国继续保持中立。美国民众强烈反对美国以任何形式卷入国外的冲突。1937，罗斯福发表了一个重要的演说，他呼吁世界所有保持中立的国家要保护自己免受法西斯的非法入侵。但许多美国人担心罗斯福试图组建一个新的联盟，而且他们反对他为此而做的努力。当时的一项民间调查表明，不到三分之一的美国人愿意改变美国的中立政策，赋予罗斯福更多的采取行动的权力。

也就在这一年，日本飞机在中国的长江炸沉了一艘美国舰艇，对此，没有几个美国人有兴趣因此而参与战争，相反，他们接受了日本人的道歉，原因很简单，美国人只是不想打战。在众多支持保持中立政策的美国人中，有一位是最有影响力的人物，他就是来自北达科他州的参议员杰拉德.奈伊(Gerald Nye)。1937年，他对《纽约时报》说，“政府采取行动，要将和平带给世界，这是毫无异议的，但这一行动绝不能将美国人与“另一场向死亡进军联系在一起”。他还说：“我非常担心，我们将再一次追随那些疯子领导者的选择，号召我们美国人为维护世界和平而战斗。”

1936年，阿道夫.希特勒入侵莱因兰，两年后，又入侵奥地利，接着，在以后的几个月里，希特勒开始向捷克斯洛伐克政府提出了领土要求。英国首相张伯伦担心，如果不让希特勒获得捷克斯洛伐克的领土，那么他可能会在整个欧洲发动战争。1938年9月，张伯伦前往慕尼黑就捷克斯洛伐克的局势与德国领导人举行会谈，结果，英国同意了德国占领捷克斯洛伐克的要求。张伯伦回到英国伦敦后向国人表示“和平来临了。”

张伯伦说：“关于捷克斯洛伐克问题的协议现在已经达成了，在我看来，这只是为整个欧洲寻求和平所需要签署大量协议的第一步。(人群欢呼声)今天早晨，我已经和德国总理希特勒进行了通话，这里有张报纸，将他的名字与我的名字放在了一起。(更多的欢呼声)。你们中有些人已经知道报纸上的内容，但我还是很愿意在此向大家读一读。我们，德国总理与英国首相今天举行了富有意义的会谈，我们一致同意，对于英德两国，对于整个欧洲来说，英德关系是最重要的关系。我们昨天晚上签署了这份协议，还有英德海军协议，这是我们两国人民不再相互打战的美好愿望的象征。”

绝大多数美国人对张伯伦的慕尼黑协定的第一反应是心情放松了，但随后，美国民众的意见改变了，美国人看到希特勒的德国现在已经控制了中欧，而日本在亚洲的力量越来越强大。张伯伦的软弱只是为独裁者通过侵略和恐吓获取更多的土地和权力服务。1938年末，罗斯福对法西斯的威胁向美国人民发生警告：“如果别的国家以战争威胁来推行它的国家政策的话，那么就没有和平可言。”

富兰克林.罗斯福：“如果一个国家采取经过深思熟虑的战争威胁的手段来推行其国家政策的话，那么就没有和平可言；如果一个国家推行其政策，让全世界无数的人无家可归，流离失所的，那么就没有和平可言；如果人类不能自由思考、自由地表达其思想，自由地信奉上帝，那么就没有和平可言；如果经济资源不是用来社会和经济的重建，而是用来进行军备竞赛，那么就没有和平可言。”

罗斯福和大多数美国人继续希望美国能够置身于外国冲突之外，但他们越来越清楚，战争可能就要来临，而且他们已经为应付各种可能的敌对行为做准备。在慕尼黑协定之后，罗斯福要求大幅度增加国防预算，他要求英法两国向美国购买武器，以增加美国企业生产武器的经验。而且他希望南北美洲能够签署协议，联合一起共同对抗法西斯，以维护和平与安全。

最后，罗斯福试图让国会改变中立法，作为总统，他需要更多的权力来对抗法西斯的侵略，并帮助英国、法国、中国和其他友好国家。然而，国会继续反对罗斯福所试图的这些变化。

但，1939年初所发生的一些事件表明，战争就要到来。德国占领了捷克斯洛伐克，接着又占领了立陶宛。佛朗哥军队控制了西班牙，意大利入侵阿尔巴尼亚。而希特勒又开始向波兰提出领土要求。在8月，德国和苏联向世界宣布，他们已经签署了互不侵犯条约。一周后，德国入侵波兰。两天后，英国和法国向德国宣战。

德国入侵波兰，标志着第二次世界大战的全面爆发，也给美国带来了巨大的挑战。一方面，几乎所有的美国人支持欧洲的民主国家反对来自希特勒、墨索里尼和其他法西斯的侵略，但另一方面，美国人真的不愿意加入一场漫长而血腥的战争。在此后的几个月里，迫使所有美国人利用其政治信仰来考虑这一问题，这一时期将是美国再次卷入可怕的世界冲突前的最后的和平时期。

简评：

都说张伯伦软弱，对不断扩张和侵略的德国采取绥靖政策，客观上助长了希特勒进攻和扩张的野心。其实，这并不完全。我相信，张伯伦是一位善良的人，一位可爱的人，一个祈求和平的人，绝不是与希特勒同流合污的人，更不是想将世界置于战火之中的人。

作为一个经历过第一次世界大战的人来说，一个善良的人，是多么希望这个世界能够避免另一场世界战争。哪怕只有一点希望，也想尽百分之百，甚至百分之一千的努力。就这一点来看，我想张伯伦的所作所为，并没有错。错的只是希特勒。

假如，张伯伦不到慕尼黑，与德国谈判，同意德国占领捷克的苏台德地区，那么就能阻止德国进一步扩张的野心吗？不可能。德国会依然我行我素，甚至会加快战争步伐。

但苏联与德国签署互不侵略条约，却有点不人道，甚至是隔岸观火，坐山观虎斗。在德国入侵波兰前一周，苏联与德国签署这个条约，已经很清楚说明了这一点。因此，相比之下，张伯伦要比苏联人高尚的多，也的纯洁的多。

In 1930s, Britain Calls for 'Peace In Our Time'  

Growing tensions in Europe and Asia created a serious conflict for Americans during the nineteen-thirties. Most Americans opposed the Fascist or military leaders gaining control in Germany, Italy, Japan, and other countries. But they were not willing to take any firm action to stop this growing movement. Americans did not want to become involved in another world war. And they called on President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and their representatives in Congress to remain neutral in world affairs. But aggression by Germany and Japan finally would force Americans to choose between their love of democracy and their desire for peace.

The first challenge to America's policy of neutrality came in October nineteen thirty-five. Troops from Fascist Italy invaded Ethiopia.

Roosevelt did not feel neutral at all. He told his advisers, "Italy is dropping bombs on Ethiopia, and that is war." He sharply criticized the Fascist Italian leader, Benito Mussolini. Roosevelt issued an order banning Americans from sending arms to either Italy or Ethiopia. And he called on Americans not to send oil or other materials to Italy. Roosevelt's efforts to stop the export of oil and other products did not succeed. But the efforts by the White House played an important part in leading the League of Nations to take economic actions against Italy.

Francisco Franco 弗朗西斯科.佛朗哥

Less than two years later, civil war broke out in Spain. Spanish Fascists led by General Francisco Franco tried to overthrow the democratic government in Madrid. Some Americans went to join the democratic army in Spain to fight Franco. But Roosevelt and the Congress agreed that America should remain officially neutral in the conflict. In this way, Roosevelt was meeting the wishes of the American people by avoiding war. But personally, he was deeply troubled by the events in Europe. In a letter to his ambassador in France, Roosevelt wrote, "One cannot help feeling that the whole European situation is blacker than at any time in your lifetime or mine."  

Another challenge to American neutrality came in Asia. Japan launched a new invasion of China in July, nineteen thirty-seven. Within one month, Japanese forces gained control of what was then called Peking, now Beijing, and Tientsin. The United States had long supported the Nationalist forces of China. And many Americans were angry about the Japanese invasion. But Roosevelt and his administration once again refused to take strong actions against the aggression. For one thing, the American Navy was weak. There was little it could do to stop Japanese aggression thousands of miles away in Asia. And neither Roosevelt nor the Congress wanted to be first to break America's official policy of neutrality.

Franklin Roosevelt made clear in private talks with friends that he understood the serious threat to world peace created by Adolf Hitler and other Fascists. He believed that the United States could not remain neutral forever if democracy was threatened in so many countries. However, Roosevelt did little to educate the nation about this threat. Instead, he generally followed the wishes of the majority of people who wanted America to remain neutral. Public opinion in the United States was strongly against any kind of involvement in foreign conflicts. In nineteen thirty-seven, Roosevelt made an important speech calling for the world's neutral nations to protect themselves from lawless Fascist nations. But many Americans feared that Roosevelt was trying to create a new alliance. And they opposed his efforts. A public opinion survey at the time showed that less than one in three Americans was willing to change the nation's strong neutrality laws to give Roosevelt more freedom of action.

In the same year, Japanese planes sank an American gunboat in the Yangtze River in China. But few Americans showed any interest in going to war over the incident. Instead, they accepted Japanese apologies. Americans simply had no desire to fight. Most Americans honestly believed that the best hope for their country was neutrality. One of the most influential supporters of neutrality was Senator Gerald Nye of North Dakota. He told the New York Times in nineteen thirty-seven that there can be no objection to any action the government may take which tries to bring peace to the world. But that action, he added, must not tie the American people "into another world death march." He said: "I very much fear that we are once again being caused to feel that the call is upon America to police a world that chooses to follow insane leaders."  

Adolf Hitler's Nazi forces moved into the Rhineland in nineteen thirty-six. Two years later, they invaded Austria. And then, in the following months, Hitler began making demands on the government of Czechoslovakia. Britain's Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was afraid that Hitler might start a general European war if he was blocked from gaining control of Czechoslovakia. In September of nineteen thirty-eight, Chamberlain traveled to Munich to discuss the situation with the German leader. The result was that Britain agreed to a German takeover of Czechoslovakia. Chamberlain returned to London promising "peace in our time."

NEVILLE CHAMBERLIN: "The settlement of the Czechoslovakian problem which has now been achieved is, in my view, only the prelude to a larger settlement in which all Europe may find peace. [Crowd cheers] This morning, I had another talk with the German chancellor, Herr Hitler, and here is the paper which bears his name upon it, as well as mine. [More cheers.] Some of you perhaps have already heard what it contains, but I would just like to read it to you. We, the German Führer and Chancellor and the British Prime Minister, have had a further meeting today, and are agreed in recognizing that the question of Anglo-German relations is of the first importance for the two countries, and for Europe. We regard the agreement signed last night, and the Anglo-German Naval Agreement, as symbolic of the desire of our two peoples never to go to war with one another again." 

The first reaction of most Americans to Chamberlain's Munich agreement was one of relief. But then, public opinion changed. Americans saw that Hitler's Germany now had control of central Europe. Japan was becoming more powerful in Asia. Chamberlain's weakness only served to show dictators that they could gain land and power through aggression and fear. Roosevelt warned Americans in late nineteen thirty-eight about this Fascist threat. "There can be no peace," he said, "if another nation makes the threat of war its national policy."  

FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT: "There can be no peace if national policy adopts as a deliberate instrument the threat of war. There can be no peace if national policy adopts as a deliberate instrument the dispersion all over the world of millions of helpless and persecuted wanderers with no place to lay their heads. There can be no peace if humble men and women are not free to think their own thoughts, to express their own feelings, and to worship God. There can be no peace if economic resources that ought to be devoted to social and economic reconstruction are to be diverted to an intensified competition in armaments." 

Roosevelt and much of the American public continued to hope that the United States could stay out of foreign conflicts. But increasingly, they understood that war might come. And they began to prepare for possible hostilities. Following the Munich agreement, Roosevelt requested a large increase in the defense budget. He asked Britain and France to buy arms from American manufacturers to give those companies more experience in producing weapons. And he helped bring about an agreement among nations in North and South America to join together to oppose Fascist threats to peace and security.

Finally, Roosevelt tried to get Congress to change the neutrality laws. He wanted more freedom as president to resist Fascist aggression and help Britain, France, China, and other friendly nations. Congress, however, continued to resist such changes.

Adolf Hitler with German and Italian officials in 1939 1939年，阿道夫.希特勒和意大利官员在一起。

But events in early nineteen thirty-nine showed that war was on the way. Germany occupied Czechoslovakia and then Lithuania. Franco's forces took control in Spain. Italy invaded Albania. And then Hitler began making demands on Poland. In August, Germany and the Soviet Union announced to the world that they had signed a joint defense agreement. A week later, Germany attacked Poland. Two days later, Britain and France declared war on Germany.

Germany's invasion of Poland, and the beginning of the war, presented a giant challenge to the United States. On the one hand, almost all Americans supported the European democracies opposing the aggression by Hitler, Mussolini, and other Fascists. But on the other hand, Americans had no desire to fight in what might be a long and bloody war. The following months would force Americans of all political beliefs to consider this problem. It would be a final period of peace for the United States before events once again drew it into a terrible world conflict. 

http://www.21voa.com/path.asp?url=/201105/se-nation-187-1930s-neutrality-tested-05may11.mp3