U.S. envoy warns embassy events may
'spin out of control'
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. ambassador to China warned Sunday that protests could "spin out of control" at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing, where demonstrators angry over the NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade hurled rocks, concrete and a Molotov cocktail.
The ambassador, Jim Sasser, said in a series of television interviews he was a prisoner within the embassy and that there was evidence that China's government may have encouraged the 2-day-old protests at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.
"No question that we're hostages here," Sasser told CBS's "Face the Nation" program in a telephone interview, the din of the demonstrations audible in the background.
Sasser described hordes of rock-throwing protesters surging around the embassy, saying they had broken almost every window in the embassy building, its chancery and his residence in Beijing, forcing his wife and son to take refuge elsewhere.
"The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has guaranteed our safety," he said. "The problem . . . is this whole thing could spin out of control."
President Clinton sent Chinese President Jiang Zemin a message to convey his regret over NATO's bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, the White House said.
"He expressed that it was unintentional, that it was a mistake and that we certainly regret the loss of life and the suffering that has been caused by this," National Security Council spokesman David Leavy said.
Despite Chinese assurances to guarantee the safety of U.S. Embassy staff in Beijing, Sasser cited evidence that the government had helped stir the protests and said the throngs of demonstrators outside the embassy had become increasingly unruly.
"I think this demonstration is now exceeding government expectations and there's always the danger that it's going to go out of control," Sasser added in a telephone interview on NBC's "Meet the Press."
The only injury at the embassy was to a Marine guard whose eye was cut by flying glass, he said.
The ambassador said other U.S. buildings in China had also been damaged in angry demonstrations, including the consular residence in Chengdu, capital of the southwestern province of Sichuan. He said the building was gutted by fire.
The protesters, some screaming "Kill Americans" and "Get Out American Pigs," are demonstrating against NATO's bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade Friday. The incident killed four people and injured more than 20.
NATO officials said the strike on the Chinese Embassy was a mistake based on faulty information erroneously identifying the embassy as a headquarters for a Yugoslav arms agency.
Defense Secretary William Cohen and Central Intelligence Agency Director George Tenet issued a statement late Saturday expressing regret over the bombing but vowing to press on with the allied bombing campaign against Yugoslavia.
A U.S. official said Clinton was considering calling the Chinese president to express his regret for the bombing, to explain why NATO would continue its strikes and to keep open the often strained U.S.-Chinese dialogue.
The official, who asked not to be named, said such a call would be "an opportunity to repeat our regret that this incident occurred and to make sure there's an understanding at the top level in Beijing that it was not intentional."
On "Face the Nation," Sasser said a Molotov cocktail, or homemade firebomb, was thrown through an embassy window in Beijing. He said the bomb touched off a small fire in the embassy that was put out by a Marine and that no one was hurt.
"There are literally tens of thousands of people here in the streets of Beijing and we're hoping the police can continue to control them," said Sasser, a former Democratic senator from Tennessee. He added that the Chinese government may have bused in some of the demonstrators.
"I think there is some evidence of encouragement on the part of the government," he told "Meet the Press."
Chinese Vice President Hu Jintao told a national television audience in China that the government backed all legal protests against the bombing. But Hu urged restraint, assuring that foreigners in China would be protected and vowing to "uphold the policy of reform and opening to the outside world."
The Belgrade attack has further strained relations between Beijing and Washington. Tensions between the two countries already were high because of allegations of Chinese nuclear spying on the United States and long-simmering disputes over trade and human rights.
China's ambassador to the United States, Li Zhaoxing, called the embassy bombing a "horrifying atrocity" and demanded that NATO investigate the incident. But he withheld comment on whether his government would seek compensation.
"The investigation first, and you must be honest and sincere," he said on ABC's "This Week" program. "The Chinese can tell whether one is or is not sincere and honest."
Officials said diplomatic efforts to end the conflict in Yugoslavia, which had made headway last week, would not be derailed for long by the Chinese Embassy bombing.
"There may be a temporary setback as a result of the tragic accident," U.S. Undersecretary of State Thomas Pickering said on CNN's "Late Edition" program.
"A process of diplomacy is moving ahead just as I believe the process of the military campaign is becoming increasingly successful," he added.