The United States signaled a tough stance going into a meeting with China on their dispute over the spy plane that was forced to land in Hainan Island, insisting that surveillance flights would be resumed.
Officials from the two sides are scheduled to meet tomorrow in Beijing to discuss the flights.
The mid-air collision between a Chinese fighter shadowing a US EP-3 spy plane prompted an 11-day standoff between the two countries.
The White House spokesman, Mr Ari Fleischer, said the US side will make clear it feels the Chinese pilot caused the accident on April 1st by flying too close.
Mr Fleischer told reporters the US team would "ask tough questions" of the Chinese about the manner in which they "dangerously intercepted" the US surveillance plane.
He said: "The agenda as far as the United States is concerned is to provide a clear and graphic explanation of the US view of the cause of the accident, and discuss ways of avoiding similar accidents in the future."
Mr Fleischer insisted the flights will resume but the timing was unclear. The Defence Secretary, Mr Donald Rumsfeld, will make a recommendation to President Bush, who will then make the final decision.
"They could resume at any time, whenever the president makes the determination," Mr Fleischer said.
He added: "The United States at all times reserves the right to protect the peace by flying reconnaissance aircraft over international waters in international airspace."
The EP-3 aircraft typically fly about 50 miles off the Chinese coast in international airspace. The Chinese government says the flights come too close.
Under discussion within the administration has been whether to have US fighter jets escort the EP-3 flights to chase off intercepting Chinese jets, a potentially provocative step.
One possible source of US fighter jets for that purpose is the US aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk, which is based in Yokosuka, Japan, but US defence officials said there were no plans to involve the carrier.
They said it was sailing away from China in the western Pacific yesterday and that there were no plans to move it where it could launch fighter jets to protect reconnaissance flights off China's coast.
The officials, who asked not to be identified, were responding to a Washington Post report quoting Navy officials as saying the Kitty Hawk was sailing in the direction of the South China Sea off China.
But defence officials said the Kitty Hawk, which recently made a port visit in Thailand, had already bypassed the South China Sea and is headed eastward away from the Philippines toward the area around Guam for a previously scheduled air defence exercise.
A senior defence official, who asked not to be identified, said the delegation would essentially discuss three issues with the Chinese: Who was responsible for the accident; possible ways to prevent such incidents in the future, and China's plan to formally demand that the flights be stopped.