1.   And while top management and the public were consumed by the Firestone dispute, relations were fraying with dealers, suppliers, white-collar workers and the union.

2.   Albright ventues to China at a time when Sino-American relations are fraying over everything from trade to human rights.

3.   Even when they stayed together, relations frayed under the pressures of starvation.

4.   But relations have frayed over the nuclear debate, resulting in rare public hostility on both sides.

5.   Once close Chinese-North Korean relations have frayed in recent years.