Much depends on how the matter unfolds on Tuesday. Calif. The delay in allowing U.S. diplomatic access to the crew, Swaine said, could be a function of operations within the Chinese chain of command, not an intentional challenge to the United States. They may still be in the process of trying to work out what to do. The incident, though, clearly raised anew the rawness of Sino-American relations. Added to that unsettling mix, Bush faces a high-stakes decision over the next two weeks over whether to sell the advanced Aegis radar system to Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a renegade province.
China is opposed to the sale.
It harkens back to the Cold War days. A crisis could ensue, said Mitchell, if the Chinese refuse to hand over the plane, or if they try to take apart its proprietary electronics and computer gear as a way of prying secrets from the plane. U.S. air crews are trained to destroy as much of the brains of their aircraft as possible in the event of a possible landing or crash over potentially hostile territory. It's likely, said one military source, that such activity took place as the EP-3E flew toward Hainan. American policy-makers don't openly regard China as an adversary.