Beijing, Washington work to end spy plane impasse

U.S. President Bush gets an update from Brig. Gen Neal Sealock, who met with the crew

In this story: Crew safe Timing of letter RELATED STORIES, SITES

From staff and wire reports

HAIKOU, China (CNN) -- U.S. diplomats prepared to meet again with the crew of a grounded U.S. spy plane late Saturday as officials in Beijing and Washington worked to end the U.S.-Chinese impasse.

U.S. officials said the discussions about a joint letter and subsequent steps are far enough along that there could be a resolution to the matter "within the next day or so," although they said the timetable depends on the Chinese.

Under the formula under discussion, a joint letter signed by the U.S. ambassador in Beijing and a Chinese official would be made public in which regret would be expressed about the accident, which led to the apparent death of a Chinese pilot.

Officials in Washington said the word "apology" would not be included, but the two sides would agree to a mechanism to resolve who was to blame for the accident.

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U.S. officials said a likely possiblity is that an already existing U.S.-Chinese maritime commission could be instructed to address that issue and to agree on procedures in case there are similar accidents in the future.

Earlier, Chinese Vice Premier Qian Qichen sent a letter to the U.S. State Department saying an American apology is "extremely important" in ending the crisis.

"The American statements so far are still unacceptable to the Chinese side. The Chinese people are extremely dissatisfied with this," said the letter from Qian to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.

With the standoff over a midair collision in its seventh day, there had been signs that a flurry of diplomatic activity was paying dividends.

Qian's letter, sent Friday, came as American diplomats were hoping to meet with the crew of the U.S. Navy EP-3E surveillance plane for a third time on Hainan Island in the South China Sea.

They have been held there since making an emergency landing following a collision with a Chinese jet fighter. The Chinese pilot is missing after reportedly parachuting from his stricken plane.

"We are awaiting word on when we will be able to see the crew," U.S. defense attache Brig. Gen. Neal Sealock told reporters in Haikou, capital of the southern island province of Hainan.

"We were promised to see the crew today, I am positive that will take place," he said.

Chinese websites had speculated that the crew could be released as early as Sunday.

The official People's Daily claimed on its website that Senator John Warner, the influential chairman of the Armed Services Committee, had said the crew could be released Sunday if negotiations over a proposed joint letter on the incident progressed quickly.

Washington and Beijing are now working on a letter containing an agreed account of how the Navy surveillance plane collided with a Chinese jet fighter off the coast of South China.

The letter was expected to contain an expression of regret for the missing Chinese pilot but not the unqualified apology China has been demanding.

Although there was no indication when the talks would conclude, expectations were that they were nearing a conclusion satisfactory to both nations.

A U.S. State Department official told CNN that "we are closer today than we were yesterday", hinting that talks were moving towards an end.

A former Beijing-based U.S. diplomat told CNN that both China and the U.S. have adopted the right approach in dealing with the issue.

"There is no guarantee of success but a breakdown helps no-one," he said. "The diplomacy is working but it takes time to work".

Throughout the latest round of diplomatic exchanges, China's President Jiang Zemin has remained silent on the issue, concentrating on his visit to Latin America.

President Bush and President Jiang reviewed drafts of a letter Friday that would have a joint commission resolve the impasse and give both sides a chance to air their cases.

Both governments have said they want a quick end to the crisis to prevent damage to already thorny relations.

Many analysts expect China to remain firm on their demands for a resolution of the standoff but argue the U.S. may reverse its 'softened' approach to the issue.

"China may well keep the pressure until they detect a U.S. bottom line but the U.S. bottom line may get harder as negotiations go on," said Prof. Steven Goldstein, a sinologist from Smith College in the U.S.

Crew safe

U.S. diplomats met Friday with the 24 crew members from the U.S. surveillance plane held by China, finding them in good health and spirits.

The crew were given supplies -- including toiletries, contact lenses and food -- and were reported to be treated well.

The pilot was being housed on his own while the remainder of the crew -- which includes three women -- were being housed in smaller groups.

At the conclusion of the talks, aviation experts from both countries will meet to assess the accident that caused a Chinese F-8 fighter jet to crash into the ocean and led the Navy reconnaissance plane to make its emergency landing.

"At that time, hopefully, we can give the United States, China and the world a better understanding of this accident, which involved, regrettably, a loss of life," said Armed Services Committee chairman John Warner after attending a briefing by Pentagon, CIA and State Department officials.

Timing of letter

Warner said it was up to Bush to discuss when the letter would be released, when the meeting would take place, "and hopefully, early return of our crew."

CNN has obtained this photo of some of the crew members

He called the letter "an integral part ... of the meeting of the minds of our two governments" about the accident.

Asked whether the letter would contain concessions, he said, "I wouldn't say concessions. I would say meeting of the minds."

Last December, the U.S. sent a demarche -- an exchange at top diplomatic levels -- to the Chinese complaining about several instances last fall in which airplanes from the same Chinese unit involved in Sunday's accident came too close to U.S. planes.

The demarche asked that China "cease and desist," Warner said. "Regrettably, it did not."

At the Pentagon, Adm. Craig Quigley said there is a mechanism in place that could be used if the U.S. and China decided to conduct a joint investigation of the incident.

An agreement with the Chinese was signed January 20, 1998, by then-Defense Secretary William Cohen, that would set up a maritime commission.

A meeting of the commission had been set for late April. "We could just move it up," Quigley said.

National Security Correspondent David Ensor contributed to this report.

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