US diplomats were yesterday allowed their first access to the 24 crew of their surveillance aircraft held by the Chinese but were given no indication of when Beijing would release them. President George Bush, facing his first prolonged foreign crisis, demanded the swift release of the crew and the aircraft.
"This accident has the potential of undermining our hopes for a fruitful and productive relationship between our two countries," Mr Bush said in a brief statement in the White House Rose Garden.
"To keep that from happening, our servicemen and women need to come home."
Mr Bush is under strong pressure from right wing elements of the Republican Party to allow sales of new radars to Taiwan to proceed. If the current impasse manages to tip the balance on that issue then, diplomatic sources say, the danger is of a quick downward spiral in relations.
But the US removal of its ships from the scene, and Mr Bush's determination to lower the rhetoric suggests that he will do what he can to avoid what he called "an accident from becoming an international incident".
However, the US will not apologise, White House officials said.
"This incident took place in international airspace," a senior US official said. "No apology is necessary."
Agreement to scale back, let alone stop, surveillance flights is unlikely.
Mr Bush said he had given the Chinese government time to "do the right thing" and return both the crew and the aircraft. "But now it is time for our servicemen and women to return home and it is time for the Chinese government to return our plane," he said. White House aides were making it clear that what really mattered was the personnel, accepting that the Chinese had already been through the aircraft for whatever might remain after the crew had destroyed key codes.
Mr Bush said the crew were well and in good spirits.
Chinese officials permitted the visit two days after the US surveillance aircraft made an emergency landing on the island of Hainan following a collision with a Chinese fighter jet. All 24 were reported to be in good health.
Following the meeting with diplomats, US sources said the crew were being held two by two in guest-house accommodation but were not allowed to contact their families. China repeated publicly that it held Washington responsible for the incident, which left one of its airmen missing, presumed dead.
The US plane was packed with high-technology surveillance equipment sure to interest its Chinese hosts.
A US official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said satellite images showed "the Chinese working on the airplane, taking a wrench to it, fooling around with it, examining it, tinkering with it".