Jiang made the remarks while meeting with the relatives of the dead submarine crew members in Dalian, a coastal city in Liaoning Province, northeast China.

Accompanied by CMC vice chairmen Hu Jintao, Guo Boxiong and Cao Gangchuan, Jiang expressed deep sorrow and offered condolences, on behalf of the CMC, to the relatives during the meeting.

The military leaders heard speeches from some relatives and inquired about the health and work situations of the family members of the deceased.

For his part, Hu urged the relatives to control their grief and use their pain as a source of strength in the battle against severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), in the advancement of the national defense capability, and in the modernization drive of the People's Liberation Army and the country.

Seventy Chinese Naval sailors aboard a conventional submarine, No.361, were killed in a recent accident near the Neichangshan Islands off eastern Shandong Province.

Since the accident, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and the Central Military Commission have closely supervised the investigation of the cause of the disaster.

Jiang, Hu and other military leaders, who also traveled to the port base where the No.361 submarine has been towed back to learn about the investigation. They urged the adoption of practical and scientific measures to prevent future accidents of this type.

(Xinhua News Agency May 6, 2003)