BBC Tuesday, 3 April, 2001, 17:38 GMT 18:38 UK

US envoy meets spy plane crew

A United States diplomat says the crew of a US spy plane grounded in China are in good health.

US Defence Attache Neal Sealock met the 24 crew members on Tuesday, but gave no details other than to say that their condition was good.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell welcomed the 40-minute meeting - the first chance US officials have had to speak to the crew since the navy aircraft made an emergency landing after a collision with a Chinese plane on Sunday.

Mr Powell said he hoped the meeting was the "beginning of the end of this incident".

Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, he said: "If we resolve this rather quickly, hopefully it will not lead to lasting damage" to relations between the US and China.

'Rapid release'

Mr Powell said he hoped that the 24-member crew - three women and 21 men - and plane would be released quickly.

He refused to speculate on reports that China has searched the plane.

The aircraft is currently being held near Lingshui on the southern island of Hainan, and is packed with top-secret monitoring equipment.

Despite his refusal to be drawn on the implications for US-China relations, he was critical of Chinese handling of the incident.

"It could have been solved without the level of difficulty we encountered", he said.

He said the meeting between US officials and the aircraft's crew "shouldn't have taken this long to happen."

Possible search

Mr Powell said that there was no connection between this dispute and an upcoming decision over what arms to sell to Taiwan, which China considers a renegade province.

Earlier, the US Ambassador to China, Admiral Joseph Prueher said, "We have every reason to think that the Chinese have been all over the airplane."

China maintains it has the right to inspect the plane, with President Jiang Zemin on Tuesday insisting the United States must "bear full responsibility" for Sunday's collision.

Beijing has accused the navy surveillance EP-3 of ramming its aircraft, but the US says it was probably an accident caused by the Chinese plane.

According to US officials, the last message from the crew said Chinese soldiers were boarding the EP-3 plane.

Bush call

US President George W Bush has called on China to release the plane "without further tampering".

But Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhu Bangzao said on Tuesday: "Based on Chinese law, and international practice, we have the right to conduct an investigation."

Mocking the American claim that the plane is protected by international law from outside inspection without US permission, Mr Zhu smiled and said: "If this plane is sovereign American territory, how did it land in China?"

Analysts say it would be catastrophic for the US if the Chinese gained access to the aircraft's computers and hard disks.

The search for the missing Chinese pilot, who reportedly parachuted from his plane, is continuing.

-- Anonymous, April 03, 2001