The United States and China have recently been at odds over Russia’s war in Ukraine, China’s cheap exports, tensions with Taiwan, and human rights issues.
But when it comes to giant pandas, diplomacy is back.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed this week that two giant pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, will be sent from the China Conservation Research Center to the San Diego Zoo. The zoo has a long-standing partnership with China on panda conservation research, and a ministry spokesperson said future exchanges would focus on prevention and treatment of major diseases and habitat protection.
“As the cooperation between China and the United States deepens in this field, the cooperation and research capacity on endangered wildlife and biodiversity conservation will be strengthened, contributing to the protection of endangered wildlife and friendly relations between China and the United States.” We believe,” said spokesman Lin Jian. , Said.
It’s not clear when the new pandas will arrive, but the agreement should allay fears that recent tensions between the United States and China threaten the beloved tradition of panda diplomacy.
China has loaned bears to U.S. zoos for more than 50 years as a gesture of goodwill between the two countries. But after the United States returned most of its pandas to China in recent years, many fans feared the practice might be coming to an end.
In November, two adult pandas, Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, and a three-year-old cub, Xiao Qiji, were trucked from the National Zoo in Washington and returned to China on a FedEx Boeing 777 called Panda. Express. The San Diego Zoo sent back its last panda in 2019. Last April, the Memphis Zoo returned a female giant panda named Ya Ya.
Conservation team leaders from the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance recently traveled to China to meet with pandas. Yun Chuan is a nearly 5-year-old male whose mother was born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007. Xin Bao is an almost 4-year-old female born at the Wolong Shenshuping Panda Base in Sichuan Province. Members of the Conservation League are known as “genial, resourceful and introverts.”
“Our decades-long partnership shows how working together we can achieve what was once thought impossible,” said Dr. Megan Owen, vice president of conservation science at the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance. “It has become a powerful example of this.” . “We have a common goal of building a sustainable future for giant pandas.”
The announcement follows recent efforts by Biden administration officials to stabilize relations between the United States and China.
In April, Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen and Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken visited China separately and expressed concern about issues such as China’s recent surge in green energy exports and human rights abuses in the Xinjiang region. did.
U.S.-China relations experts expressed appreciation for the panda’s symbolism, but noted that many of the more important issues still require further progress.
Eswar Prasad, former head of the International Monetary Fund’s China division, expressed hope that cooperation on panda conservation could lead to further cooperation in areas such as climate change.
“A pair of pandas may look cute and fluffy, but that alone won’t do much to ease tensions between China and America,” said Prasad, who is also a professor at Cornell University. “Still, it certainly bodes well if the two countries can continue to work together on issues of common purpose, while distancing themselves from issues of deep disagreement.”
And while Chinese pandas have been allowed to travel to San Diego, flights for American and Chinese travelers remain restricted.
Meg Rismeier, a Harvard Business School professor who specializes in the comparative political economy of development with a focus on China, said: “I’m glad the United States and China can find a way to cooperate and exchange anything really.” I think so,” he said. “I would like to see more visas and visits for humans.”
