protestation

　貿易摩擦はどうなっていくのでしょうか。

The United States is optimistic about finding a way forward in its trade dispute with China, but it does not have a date scheduled for further talks as it assesses Beijing’s response to the latest round of tariffs, a senior White House official said on Friday.

The official said despite its protestations, China was well aware of U.S. demands it halt what Washington considers unfair trade practices. U.S. President Donald Trump has made clear his resolve on the issue, the official said, and the two sides remain in touch.

以下省略

http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0004757554

　今回取り上げるのはprotestation /prὰṭəstéɪʃən/ です。『ジーニアス英和辞典』（第四版、大修館書店）には「〔…の/…という〕名言、断言」や「〔…への〕抗議［意義申し立て］」と記載されていました。またLDOCEにはa strong statement saying that something is true or not true, when other people believe the oppositeと定義されています。

　protestとの違いを調べてみました。LDOCEにはprotestはsomething that you do to show publicly that you think that something is wrong and unfair, for example taking part in big public meetings, refusing to work, or refusing to buy a company’s productsやsomething that you do to show publicly that you think that something is wrong and unfair, for example taking part in big public meetings, refusing to work, or refusing to buy a company’s productsとあり、protestationの方が強く言いたいことを表明しているのではないかと思います。また、protestの方はマイナスな事を述べる時に使うのではないかとも感じました。(rain)