Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=4-11-01

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

NUMBER=2-274817

TITLE=BUSH CHINA (L-2nd UPDATE)

BYLINE=DEBORAH TATE

DATELINE=WHITE HOUSE

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: President Bush says he looks forward to welcoming home the 24 crew members of a U-S surveillance plane who have been held in China since April first, when their aircraft made an emergency landing on Hainan Island after colliding with a Chinese fighter jet. The Americans are expected to return soon as part of a deal in which the United States says it expressed regret - but no apology - for the incident. Correspondent Deborah Tate reports from the White House.

TEXT: The breakthrough came when China early Wednesday accepted U-S expressions of regret over the apparent death of the Chinese fighter pilot and over the U-S plane having landed on Chinese territory without permission.

President Bush welcomed the end of the standoff over the matter - which, in his first foreign policy challenge, had threatened to strain already tense U-S - Sino relations. Mr. Bush was careful to underscore U-S regret for the loss of the Chinese pilot.

/// BUSH ACTUALITY ///

This has been a difficult situation for both our countries. I know the American people join me in expressing sorrow for the loss of life of a Chinese pilot. Our prayers are with his wife and his child.

/// END ACT ///

China - which blamed the incident on the United States - had demand a full apology. But the United States,which maintained the collision was an accident had refused.

Speaking in Paris hours after the diplomatic deal was announced, Secretary of State Colin Powell said there was nothing to apologize for.

/// POWELL ACTUALITY ///

To apologize would have suggested that we had done something wrong and were accepting responsibility for having done something wrong, and we did not do anything wrong, and therefore it was not possible to apologize.

/// END ACT ///

The U-S expressions of regret were contained in a letter delivered by U-S Ambassador Joseph Prueher to Chinese Foreign Minister (Tang Jiaxuan) assignments.neb-wire

. The carefully-worded statement gave Chinese officials some room for interpretation.

Mr. Powell said the use of the words 'regret, sorrow, and very sorry' in the letter relate only to the loss of the Chinese pilot and the U-S pilot's unintentional entering of Chinese airspace.

/// POWELL ACTUALITY ///

He had 23 lives and his own to save. Niceties and formalities were not available to him at the time, and he did a marvelous job of putting the plane on the ground. But he did enter airspace without permission, and landed without permission, and for that we are very sorry but glad he did it.

/// END ACT ///

As part of the agreement to release the U-S crew members, the United States and China agreed to meet April 18th to discuss the incident and the future of U-S surveillance flights near Chinese territory - which Beijing wants stopped, but Washington argues are necessary for U-S national security. (Signed)

Neb/dat/PT