Chinese and US Military Planes 'Encounter' Again: Washington Times

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, July 03, 2002

Chinese and US Military Planes 'Encounter' Again: Washington Times

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US Officers: "Chinese Pilots Are Getting Ever-closer to Our Reconnaissance Planes-an Unsettling Signal"

A recent Washington Times report said: On June 24, two figher-7 planes of the Chinese Air Force soared to the sky and, in the international airspace near the Chinese (mainland) coast on the northern part of Taiwan, close intercepted a US EP-3 reconnaissance plane driven by propeller, both sides flew parallel for several minutes, the two planes were only 50 meters apart at the closest distance.

The report said this was the closest "encounter" of the two military planes since the crash between the Chinese fighter and the US EP-3 reconnaissance plane over the South China Sea in April last year.

The report even quoted a US officer as saying: The fact that Chinese pilots are getting ever-closer to our reconnaissance planes, this shows that the Chinese military is accelerating its harassment of the US reconnaissance planes, the recent air interception is an unsettling signal.

However, the US Defense Department refused to make direct comments on the Washington Times report, the Department's spokesman Davis said: Chinese fighters frequently got closer to US reconnaissance planes in order to confirm the identity of the other side, this practice is nothing unusual, nor does it constitute a threat to us. Davis proceeded to comment: Interception is highly professional, demonstrating an extremely high flying skill.

The Hasty Release of the Report at the Time of Rodman's China Visit in An Attempt to Remind One of the Possible Repetition of the Incident of Plane Crash

Then, US media reported that the US Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs Peter Rodman arrived in Beijing June 25 to conduct talks with high- ranking Chinese military officers for three days in an attempt to repair the damaged relations between the two sides since the crash of military planes in April last year.

Report said US high-ranking military officer disclosed that in Beijing Rodman met with Chinese National Defense Minister Chi Haotian, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Xiong Guangkai and Vice-foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, but the two sides finally failed to reach any agreement on resumption of military exchanges. Both sides only agreed to continue contacts in the future.

People with discerning eyes have noticed that the Washington Times report was published exactly at the time when Rodman was visiting Beijing and the source of the news report was said to be from the US military. So, what is the relation between the above-mentioned report and Rodman's China visit and what motive is hidden behind the report cannot but aroused people's vigilance.

As everybody knows, after the incident of Sino-US plane crash in April last year, the US military, in disregard of the Chinese side's repeated warnings, flagrantly resumed its reconnaissance over the Chinese coastal areas within one month.

While the Chinese military also carried out all-weather warning cruises over the Yellow Sea, the East China Sea and the South China Sea in order to "counter-control" US planes within the first time.

It is reported that thanks to the tactics of awaiting the arrival, supervision, interception, anti-reconnaissance, anti-harassment, driving and sending off, the US military gained not much advantage for its "stealthy watch".

Nevertheless, in this "dangerous game" provoked by the US military, both sides could still "get along well without any trouble" for the time being, the US side also admitted that the frequency of interception was "about the same" as before the incident of plane crash last year.

Then, why was the Washington Times so eager to dish up this report at the time of Rodma's visit to China? The only reasonable explanation is this: As the mouthpiece of US right-wing forces, Washington Times deemed it necessary to reflect the "Hawk's" "different voices" about the resumption of Sino-US military exchange and remind the US government of a possible repetition of plane crash incident" through the "warning" of military personages.

Article from Page 3, Global Times, July 1, translated by People's Daily Online

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