One more Chinese aircraft yesterday joined two South Korean salvage ships in the waters off East China's Yantai in the search for survivors from a South Korean vessel that sank there last Saturday, according to sources with China's Ministry of Communications.

Also, relatives of the missing sailors arrived in Yantai on Tuesday and will participate in the search for their family members with the South Korean ships.

The South Korean vessel "Golden Rose" sank off East China's coast on May 12 after colliding in heavy fog with Saint Vincent-registered "Jinsheng", a container ship operated by Shandong Lufeng Shipping Company Ltd.

All 16 crew members aboard the "Golden Rose" are missing - eight of them are South Korean nationals, seven are from Myanmar and one is Indonesian. "Jinsheng" was not damaged and sailed into port safely.

More than 200 Chinese ships and several aircraft have been involved in the rescue mission, with the search field expanded on Tuesday.

The area where "Golden Rose" sank was identified on Monday but high winds hindered rescue efforts.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said on Tuesday that China would settle issues concerning the accident in accordance with international pacts and laws, and in a responsible and humanitarian spirit, according to Xinhua News Agency.

"As long as there is 1 percent hope for the survival of the missing sailors, China will exert 100 percent effort in the rescue work," Jiang told a regular press conference.

Source: China Daily