-Caveat Lector- WJPBR Email News List [EMAIL PROTECTED] Peace at any cost is a Prelude to War! US Presses China for Free Access to Crew Photos Reuters Photo Audio/Video Washington Diplomats Move Forward in Spy Plane Negotiations - (KHOU, Houston) Diplomats Wait For Another Meeting With Detained Crew - (Reuters) By Andrew Browne BEIJING (Reuters) - As 24 U.S. air crew began their second week in detention on Sunday, U.S. diplomats pressed China for unrestricted access while officials from both sides hammered out a joint letter to try to resolve the standoff. Efforts to end the crisis, which threatens China-U.S. relations if it drags on much longer, appeared to hinge on a choice of words in the letter that would allow a face-saving way out for both Chinese President Jiang Zemin (news - web sites) and President Bush (news - web sites). China wants a full apology for last Sunday's crash between a U.S. spy plane and Chinese fighter, but the United States insists it will not go further than an expression of regret for the lost pilot of the Chinese aircraft. In Haikou, U.S. diplomats were awaiting word on a fourth meeting with the crew after seeing them on Saturday and passing on e-mails from home, toiletries and the latest American sports scores to boost their morale. ``With regard to future access, we are still working hard for unfettered daily access to the crew and we asked to see them twice a day,'' Defense Attache Brigadier-General Neal Sealock told reporters. ``I trust that we will continue to have this access on a daily basis,'' he said. Speaking of Saturday's late-night meeting with the crew in Haikou's military-run Nanhang No 1 Guesthouse, Sealock said: ''It was very heartening to see them in very high spirits in very good health and good condition.'' Free access to the 21 men and three women crew may buy time for what could be a long and tortuous negotiation over the letter, which U.S. officials said would also set out a mechanism for an exchange of views on the incident. Patience is wearing thin among U.S. lawmakers and there is talk of trade retaliation and other sanctions. Palm Sunday Service In Beijing, U.S. Ambassador Joseph Prueher headed off to church on Palm Sunday. He told reporters he was awaiting word on another meeting from the Chinese Foreign Ministry (news - web sites) and ``we'll interrupt whatever we're doing for that next meeting.'' ``The air crew is well, they're doing fine, we're hoping to get them out of here before too long,'' Prueher said. Sealock, dressed in a dark polo shirt and tan trousers, delivered his remarks in a monotone voice and declined as usual to take any questions. Several U.S. diplomats in Haikou, including Mark Canning the public affairs officer for the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou, would be flown out of Hainan on Sunday and replaced by fresh arrivals, diplomats said. U.S. political analysts said an apology was out of the question because it would imply that the U.S. pilot was guilty and it was wrong for the EP-3 plane to be patrolling the sea near Asia's major military power. But in a sign of hardening Congressional sentiment, Henry Hyde, the Republican head of the House International Relations Committee, described the U.S. crew as ``hostages.'' Photos Reuters Photo ``I would call them hostages. They are being held against their will, and five days is a rather long time, especially if you're the one being held in detention,'' ``I don't know why they're demanding we apologize. We ought to be demanding that they apologize for surveilling our planes and flying so closely to them,'' Hyde said in taped remarks for CNN. In a letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites) released by the Chinese news agency Xinhua on Saturday, Vice Premier Qian Qichen said Beijing was ``dissatisfied'' with Bush's expression of regret, adding an apology was of ``the utmost importance.'' ``Up to now the American attitude is still unacceptable to the Chinese side, and the Chinese people are extremely dissatisfied with this,'' the letter said. Biggest Ever Search China's main army newspaper, the People's Liberation Army Daily, on Sunday condemned what it called hostile U.S. spy flights off the Chinese coast. ``Frequent military surveillance activities along China's coast do not have a good and peaceful objective, rather they are clearly hostile in nature,'' an editorial said. The newspaper called for the United States to take responsibility, apologize to the Chinese government and people, stop similar surveillance flights and pay compensation. The People's Daily reported on a visit by Defense Minister Chi Haotian to the wife of missing fighter pilot Wang Wei. ``The U.S. government until now has still not apologized for the act of hegemony, increasingly arousing the anger of all the people of the world,'' the Communist Party flagship daily said in a front-page commentary. Chinese media coverage has increasingly focused on the distress of the family of the missing pilot, including his wife and six-year-old son, Wang Zi. The official Xinhua news agency said the boy did not know his father was missing. A massive sea and air search for the airman was still under way in the South China Sea. Xinhua quoted Lu Zhiyi, commander of the rescue center on Hainan, as saying it was the biggest search ever undertaken by the Chinese Navy in terms of he number of people mobilized, search area and duration. ``Although the hope of Wang Wei surviving is getting slim, we will continue to do our utmost to find him,'' Lu was quoted as saying. *COPYRIGHT NOTICE** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] Want to be on our lists? Write at [EMAIL PROTECTED] for a menu of our lists! <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! 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