CHINA: CHINA AND THE UNITED STATES HAVE WOUNDED UP A FIRST DAY OF TALKS ON THE APRIL 1 SPY PLANE INCIDENT

Record ID: 338098

  • Title: CHINA: CHINA AND THE UNITED STATES HAVE WOUNDED UP A FIRST DAY OF TALKS ON THE APRIL 1 SPY PLANE INCIDENT
  • Date: 18th April 2001
  • Summary: BEIJING, CHINA (APRIL 18, 2001) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. SLV EXTERIOR OF CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY 0.05 2. CU CHINESE FLAG 0.09 3. SV MILITARY GUARD WATCHING MEDIA WAITING OUTSIDE FOREIGN MINISTRY 0.13 4. SV MEDIA 0.19 5. SV MILITARY GUARDS STANDING OUTSIDE FOREIGN MINISTRY 0.24 6. SLV U.S. OFFICIAL CARS LEAVING FORE
  • Embargoed: 3rd May 2001 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BEIJING, CHINA
  • Country: China
  • Reuters ID: LVA8QJE93CWNAFXSEKAVGL1KK6E
  • Story Text: China and the United States have wound up a first day
    of talks on the April 1 spy plane incident. The first bout of
    talks saw a U.S. team meet Chinese diplomats and military
    officials at Beijing's Foreign Ministry in a session which
    lasted for about 3 hours.



    Both China and the United States said on Wednesday
    (April 18) that the talks could set the tone for relations
    already fraught with tension over human rights and Taiwan.

    Meetings will resume on Thursday (April 19), a U.S. embassy
    official said.

    There was no immediate comment from either side on the
    progress of talks expected to focus on demands from U.S.

    negotiators for the return of their spy plane and Chinese
    calls for an end to U.S. surveillance flights around its
    coast.

    State-run Xinhua news agency quoted Lu Shumin, the head of
    the Chinese delegation, as saying Beijing had "plenty of
    evidence" that an American EP-3 spy plane caused the April 1
    mid-air collision with a Chinese F-8 fighter that sparked the
    stand-off. The United States blames F-8 pilot Wang Wei for the
    collision.

    Lu also repeated China's demand for an end to U.S.

    surveillance flights off its coast, indicating no softening of
    China's position on the incident.

    Wednesday's talks did not begin until 3 p.m. (0700 GMT)
    and lasted only three hours.

    Many Chinese people believe authorities should stand up to
    the United States and demand a fuller explanation of the
    spyplane incident.

    Two Chinese protesters staged a small demonstration
    outside the Foreign Ministry, where the talks were held, and
    chanted anti-U.S. slogans.

    One protester, a man surnamed Su, lifted a sign accusing
    the United States of hegemony after the U.S. delegation drove
    off from the Foreign Ministry. A plain-clothes police officer
    removed his sign after examining it.

    "If you (the U.S.) want to show your power, you have to
    have a limit. Stop the hegemony," protester Mr Su said.

    Neither the Chinese or the U.S. side appeared ready to
    give ground on the collision, after which the 24 crew members
    of the U.S. plane were detained for 11 days until Washington
    said it was "very sorry" for the Chinese pilot's death and the
    unauthorised emergency landing.

    Officials in Washington said top Pentagon staff had
    recommended that spy flights should not resume immediately off
    China's southern coast, scene of the collision.

    But Washington still wants its plane back.

    The rhetoric from both sides has sharpened markedly since
    China freed the crew of the U.S. aircraft last week.



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