Nute Gunray Posted April 11, 2001 Share Posted April 11, 2001 China released the 24 Americans. That is all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rogue 9 Posted April 11, 2001 Share Posted April 11, 2001 Here is the news brief...for anyone else who cares. <FONT SIZE=1> BEIJING (AP) - China agreed Wednesday to release 24 crew members of a U.S. spy plane, ending a dramatic, 11-day stalemate that threatened U.S.-China relations. The agreement came after the United States sent a letter saying it is ``very sorry'' for the plane's unauthorized landing and the death of a Chinese pilot. China indicated it would hold the plane pending talks expected to begin April 18. Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan said the crew would be released ``on humanitarian grounds'' as soon as ``appropriate travel procedures'' were completed. A senior Bush administration official said the White House expected the crew to be released late Wednesday U.S. time, noting that it would take time to get a U.S. plane to China's Hainan island, the crew boarded and aircraft fueled. ``It won't be long,'' Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Sun Yuxi said. ``The procedures are already under way.'' He added that ``the Chinese side has all rights to conduct comprehensive investigation into the foreign reconnaissance plane.'' At the Pentagon, officials speaking on condition of anonymity said arrangements were in place for a commercial U.S. airliner to fly from the Pacific island of Guam to pick up the 24 Americans on Hainan and fly them to Hawaii after a brief stopover at Guam. The welcoming ceremony for the crew is likely to be held at Whidbey Island Naval Air Station in Washington state later this week, the officials said. The crew of the high-tech EP-3E U.S. Navy surveillance plane has been held on Hainan since April 1. The plane made an emergency landing there after an in-flight collision with a Chinese fighter jet. The Chinese pilot is missing and presumed dead. China had demanded an apology. The letter U.S. Ambassador Joseph Prueher delivered Wednesday afternoon to the Chinese Foreign Ministry twice used the words ``very sorry.'' The letter appeared to be a complex linguistic compromise worked out during days of arduous negotiations to satisfy China while also accommodating President Bush's refusal to offer an apology for what his government believed to be an accident. Immediately after the letter's release, though, Chinese translations of its wording differed. Sun, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, said the letter expressed ``shenbiao qianyi'' - translated as deep apology or regret - but he was not reading directly from the text as he spoke. A copy of the Chinese-language letter released by the U.S. Embassy didn't use the same term, saying instead that Bush expressed ``feichang wanxi'' - extreme sympathy - to the Chinese people and the family of the missing pilot. It also says Bush was ``feichang baoqian'' - extremely sorry - that the U.S. Navy plane landed without permission. ``Please convey to the Chinese people and to the family of pilot Wang Wei that we are very sorry for their loss,'' said the letter, which was released by the White House in English. China has accused the U.S. pilot of illegally entering Chinese territory by making the emergency landing without obtaining permission in advance, and the letter goes on to say Washington is ``very sorry the entering of China's airspace and the landing did not have verbal clearance.'' But at the insistence of Secretary of State Colin Powell, the United States refused to say the American plane had violated Chinese airspace by landing at Hainan. The American letter expressed appreciation for ``China's efforts to see to the well-being'' of the crew. The letter also sets up an April 18 meeting, whose agenda will include arrangements for release of the plane. U.S. officials are operating under the assumption that the Chinese have stripped the plane of sophisticated surveillance equipment. ``My government understands and expects that our air crew will be permitted to depart China as soon as possible,'' the letter delivered by Prueher said. Speaking later in the day, President Bush said ``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,'' Bush said, adding that he looks forward to welcoming the crew home. Relatives of the 21 men and three women in the U.S. crew expressed joy, relief and some skepticism at the news that the two countries had reached a deal to free them. ``My heart is just pounding,'' Shirley Crandall, stepmother of Navy seaman Jeremy Crandall, said from her home in Loves Park, Ill. ``We're very excited.'' Said Robert Blocher of Charlotte, N.C., father of Steven Blocher: ``Of course, I'm extremely happy. But when it's going to hit me is when Steven gets off the plane and I get him in my arms, then I'll be a basket case.'' There was no indication where the crew members were. Reporters saw workers removing bed linen from the military guesthouse where the crew had been staying, but the curtains were drawn, and several guards in civilian clothes stood guard at the gate of the complex. Chinese President Jiang Zemin, in Montevideo, Uruguay as part of a six-country Latin American tour, did not answer questions about the settlement. When journalists shouted questions at Jiang during his appearance at the Uruguayan Congress, he just smiled and walked past. In the hours before the announcement, China had appeared to be readying its public - whose outrage has been whipped up by increasingly shrill anti-U.S. comments in state media - for ending the standoff. State television reported a statement by Powell saying Washington was ``sorry'' that the spy plane entered Chinese airspace without permission to make an emergency landing. And a Chinese admiral was quoted as warning that the nation might have to accept the death of the missing pilot. Experts had said a key condition for winning the release of the crew would be an announcement on the fate of the pilot whose F-8 collided with their EP-3E surveillance plane. State media have lionized the pilot as a patriot who crashed defending his country. On Tuesday, the U.S. Defense Department released more details aimed at backing up its argument that the U.S. plane was not to blame for the collision. A Pentagon official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the crew has reported that the Chinese fighter made two close passes before the collision, bolstering the argument that its pilot was recklessly aggressive. </FONT> [This message has been edited by Rogue 9 (edited April 11, 2001).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psycho Tycho Posted April 12, 2001 Share Posted April 12, 2001 Yay! That's great news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR2000Z Posted April 12, 2001 Share Posted April 12, 2001 Oh I see how it goes. They get to transfer from a semi-communist country back to America without paper work! That sucks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admiral Odin Posted April 12, 2001 Share Posted April 12, 2001 yay ------------------ "Dulce bellum inexpertis." (Sweet is war to those who have never experinced it.) Roman Proverb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taarkin Posted April 12, 2001 Share Posted April 12, 2001 Now watch them come back with bombs strapped on them... ------------------ Was I supposed to eat the heads too? 'Cause I took nooo prisioners! Once again, evil is defeated through the use of decorative agricultural technology! Official forum Psychic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rogue 9 Posted April 12, 2001 Share Posted April 12, 2001 even china isn't that dumb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guildenstern Posted April 12, 2001 Share Posted April 12, 2001 At the risk of starting WWIII...R9#2, I find your comment...interesting. Do your views speak for all Americans? It certainly says a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Zoom Rabbit Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 Yes. (Note: ZR's citizenship is actually listed as Atlantean.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rogue 9 Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 my comments speak for me an me alone, if anyone wants to agree thats great but otherwise its just my opinion, to get a scope of how americans feel, read Zoom's "Bad Government" Thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rune Haako Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 This news is even better to hear for a military man. Me (just in case someone didn't read into that). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR2000Z Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 I heard there were CNN spys in China that got caught. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Thrawn Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 Good to have them back in the U.S. ------------------ "Noobies Suck" ThRaWn90,RAL_Thrawn,SOB_Thrawn Rogue 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tierce Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 I say we should blow up China anyway No hard feelings though ------------------ Boo!..admit it. i scared the living sh*t out of you. It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness. CHINESE PROVERB [This message has been edited by Assassin (edited April 12, 2001).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admiral Odin Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 I know why they were released the Chinese don't want Jessie Jackson in their country ------------------ "Dulce bellum inexpertis." (Sweet is war to those who have never experinced it.) Roman Proverb Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taarkin Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 Damn that was our last hope to get rid of him! ------------------ Was I supposed to eat the heads too? 'Cause I took nooo prisioners! Once again, evil is defeated through the use of decorative agricultural technology! Official forum Psychic [This message has been edited by Taarkin (edited April 13, 2001).] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Redwing Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 I wanna be Atlantean tooo *whines* Oh no wait I'd probably drown. Oh well. ------------------ At last we will reveal ourselves to the Jedi. At last we will have revenge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Zoom Rabbit Posted April 13, 2001 Share Posted April 13, 2001 We use those tricky breather things they had in TPM. Here's your complimentary Atlantean passport. *(Hands Redwing a seashell.)* That'll be twelve thousand dollars in taxes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rogue 9 Posted April 16, 2001 Share Posted April 16, 2001 heres a recent quote from one of our senators... Sen. Robert Torricelli, D-N.J., said on NBC's ``Meet the Press.'' ``There will be retribution.'' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR2000Z Posted April 16, 2001 Share Posted April 16, 2001 Lets face it. US is getting stupid.They are already fighting Iraq and Serbia.If we keep fighting Serbia, we will eventually fight Russia.The last thing we want is to fight China and Russia that teams up and Iraq, still produces nuclear weapons.Were fighting the countries that would be hard to defeat. Im sure NATO wouldnt really want to help us with our problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nute Gunray Posted April 16, 2001 Author Share Posted April 16, 2001 Originally posted by JR2000Z: If we keep fighting Serbia, we will eventually fight Russia. NO. Serbians HATE Russians. Russia tried to conquer them like 600 years ago or something and Serbia's STILL pissed. I know a Serbian named Misha than served in the Yugoslavian military in the mid 1980s and his opinion on the Russians was "Russians are not to be liked." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR2000Z Posted April 16, 2001 Share Posted April 16, 2001 Im glad that yer making new friends Nute. Anyway, Serbia and Russia are both Slavicks so they were they had the same culture.So its understandable that they would help each other out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nute Gunray Posted April 16, 2001 Author Share Posted April 16, 2001 i've known the guy for almost seven years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rogue 9 Posted April 16, 2001 Share Posted April 16, 2001 Originally posted by JR2000Z: Lets face it. US is getting stupid.They are already fighting Iraq and Serbia.If we keep fighting Serbia, we will eventually fight Russia.The last thing we want is to fight China and Russia that teams up and Iraq, still produces nuclear weapons.Were fighting the countries that would be hard to defeat. Im sure NATO wouldnt really want to help us with our problems. Russia and China Team up...you should be a comedian, those countries hate each other, and Russia won't bother us because without our economic aid and trade there country colapses again , and we are NATO so of course we'll help woth our problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taarkin Posted April 16, 2001 Share Posted April 16, 2001 Serbians HATE Russians Didn't Russia declare war on Austria in defense of Serbia? ------------------ Was I supposed to eat the heads too? 'Cause I took nooo prisioners! Once again, evil is defeated through the use of decorative agricultural technology! Official forum Psychic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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