The standoff between China and the US over the stranded spy plane and crew worsened yesterday, with China accusing the US of "arrogance" and "repeated errors".
There were no signs of a breakthrough in the crisis, with both sides refusing to shift their positions. As the US reiterated its demand for the release of the 24 crew and the EP-3 aircraft, which made an emergency landing on Hainan island last Sunday, the Chinese Foreign Minister, Mr Tang Jiaxuan, accused Washington of not taking proper responsibility for the incident
The White House said it was up to China to avert an international incident by releasing the aircraft's crew. "As the President indicated yesterday, this was an accident, and he does not want to let it rise to the level of an international incident," a spokesman said. "The best way to prevent it from rising to that level is for the Chinese to release our servicemen and women so they can come home."
There were some concerns that the crisis could drag out, with President Jiang Zemin leaving China for a two-week trip to Latin America. One Western diplomat said there was a risk that a major decision could be delayed due to his absence. But other opinion was that he must be confident that the problem was under control. Before he left, Mr Jiang repeated demands for the US to apologise for the collision, in which China lost a fighter jet and its pilot.
Yesterday the temperature increased further when the Chinese Foreign Minister berated the US ambassador to China, Admiral Joseph Prueher, after summoning him to complain at the failure of the US to apologise.
However, the US Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, said Washington had no intention of saying sorry and once again firmly rejected Chinese accusations that the collision was its fault.
The British Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook, also urged China to return the US spy plane and its crew. Mr Cook said it was not realistic for Beijing to expect an apology from Washington over the incident.
In another move likely to lead to a deterioration of relations between the two countries, it emerged that China had formally arrested the Chinese-born US academic whose detention in February brought statements of concern from President Bush. Dr Gao Zhan, a sociology researcher in Washington, was arrested on charges of accepting money from a foreign intelligence agency and spying in China.