WASHINGTON - A flurry of diplomatic activity yielded signs of progress yesterday in resolving the standoff between Washington and Beijing as President George W. Bush said he regretted the loss of a Chinese fighter pilot in a collision with a US spy plane.
Last night, China allowed US officials to visit the crew of the plane who have been held on Hainan Island since they were forced to make an emergency landing there last Sunday.
It was only the second time US diplomats had been allowed to see the 21 men and three women in the week-long standoff between the US and China.
The diplomats reported that the crew appeared to be healthy and in good spirits and were grateful to receive fresh underwear, toiletries and magazines.
The easing of tensions came as Chinese search parties reported seeing a body in the area of the South China Sea where fighter pilot Wang Wei ejected after the collision.
Mr Bush, facing his most serious foreign policy test yesterday, expressed his regrets over the incident. While this fell short of China's demand for a full apology, the President made it clear he did not want the dispute to destabilise relations between the two countries.
"I regret that the Chinese pilot is missing and I regret that one of their airplanes is missing.
"Our prayers go out to the pilot and his family," Mr Bush said.
"Our message to the Chinese is we should not let this incident destabilise relations.
"Our relationship with China is very important, but they need to realise that it's time for our people to be home."
The missing pilot's father, Wang Ming, aged 63, his mother, Wang Yueqi, 56, and his wife, Yuan Guoqin, have been admitted to hospital because of the stress.
The Chinese Navy has mobilised 74 planes, 42 ships, and more than 10,000 people to search for Wang, aged 33.
Searchers who spotted the body were unable to recover it because of stormy seas, said reports in Hong Kong, quoting rescue personnel in Haikou, the capital of Hainan island.
Mr Bush's comments came as the US intensified efforts to secure the release of the surveillance plane, packed with top-secret eavesdropping equipment, and its crew.
CNN reported that officials were trying to finalise a deal in which an investigation into the accident would be made by a joint US-China commission set up in 1998 to discuss incidents at sea or in the air.
The crew would then be released.
Transport planes are on standby at Kadena Air Force Base in Japan to ferry the crew out.
The spy plane would be released once the investigation had begun.
Although China was yesterday still demanding that the US apologise for the incident, the tone in Washington seemed to lift slightly after Beijing welcomed US expressions of regret as a "step in the right direction."
Chinese President Jiang Zemin said: "I want to emphasise that Chinese and US leaders should manage this situation with maximum interest in bilateral relations in order to find an adequate solution."
His comments suggested that he and other Chinese leaders with political stakes in good relations with the United States are gaining the upper hand over military hawks and Communist Party hardliners keen to use the incident to humiliate Washington.
It also suggested concern in Beijing over growing anger among the American public and members of Congress which threatens to spill into trade and other areas.
- REUTERS
Herald Online feature: Spy plane standoff
Map
China Daily
China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Official site of Chinese Government
Jane's Military Aerospace: EP3
US Pacific Command
China People's Daily
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