Top executives and the former chairman of Wahaha Group threatened to go to court and sever ties with longtime joint venture partner Groupe Danone yesterday, the International Herald Tribune reported. In a press release, Wahaha said it was willing to retract the threat on the condition that Groupe Danone stop investing in competing Chinese beverage companies. It also wanted Danone to apologize for harming the 11-year-old joint venture, including dropping its exclusive claim on Wahaha's brand name rights. The announcement is a continuation of the corporate battle for control over Wahaha, China's largest beverage maker.