Still Disputes, Despite Agreement in Principle Between U.S. and China on Return of Plane
DEBORAH WANG, CNN ANCHOR: China has barred a U.S. warship from docking in Hong Kong next month. The ban on the USS Inchon appears to be linked to the standoff between the two nations over the U.S. spy plane held on Hainan Island since April 1st. And it comes despite an agreement between Beijing and Washington on the return of the aircraft. Rebecca MacKinnon has more on the deal.</s>REBECCA MACKINNON, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): Finally, Beijing and Washington agree they have a deal on how the United States can take its plane back.</s>ZHU BANGZAO, FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN (through translator): The U.S. side will send a rented commercial Antonov 124 cargo plane to China to take back the disassembled EP-3.</s>MACKINNON: The United States and China still disagree on what caused the collision between the EP-3 surveillance plane and a Chinese fighter jet. Last month, U.S. negotiations began talks on the return of the U.S. plane. They broke down on the second day, each side giving a different account of happened. Then, last week, China's foreign ministry claimed an agreement on dismantling the EP-3 had been reached, but the Pentagon denied a deal.</s>ZHU (through translator): After my initial remarks, the United States, mainly the Pentagon spokesman, said that he was not aware of the situation, and that the United States side had not made any proposal. That confused me. You should ask the U.S. side why this happened.</s>MACKINNON: Western diplomats say it happened because the Chinese side announced a deal before the United States was ready. Why?</s>JIA QINGGUO, PEKING UNIVERSITY: Both sides have domestic political interests to be considered.</s>MACKINNON: After releasing the crew without a full apology from Washington, observers say Beijing had a political need to have the first and last word on how the plane will be returned.</s>JIA: Most people probably also realize that there is very little the Chinese government can do in getting a better deal, given the fact that the United States is much stronger than China.</s>MACKINNON (on camera): U.S. officials say that, technically, it could take a month or longer to dismantle and transport the EP-3 on the Antonov plane. But China's foreign ministry spokesman says just how long it takes to get the plane back depends on Washington's attitude. Rebecca MacKinnon, CNN, Beijing.