SAN FRANCISCO Chinese language President Xi Jinping signaled late Wednesday that China will ship new pandas to the US, calling them envoys of friendship between the Chinese language and American peoples.
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We’re able to proceed our cooperation with the US on panda conservation, and do our greatest to satisfy the needs of the Californians in order to deepen the pleasant ties between our two peoples, Xi stated throughout a dinner speech with enterprise leaders.
The gesture got here on the finish of a day during which Xi and President Joe Biden held their first head to head assembly in a yr and pledged to attempt to scale back tensions. Xi didn’t share further particulars on when or the place pandas is likely to be offered however appeared to recommend the subsequent pair of pandas are most probably to return to California, most likely San Diego.
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The bears have lengthy been the image of the U.S.-China friendship since Beijing gifted a pair of pandas to the Nationwide Zoo in Washington in 1972, forward of the normalization of bilateral relations. Later, Beijing loaned the pandas to different U.S. zoos, with proceeds going again to panda conservation applications.
The Nationwide Zoos three large pandas, Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and their cub Xiao Qi Ji, eight days in the past started their lengthy journey to China. After their departure, solely 4 pandas are left in the US, within the Atlanta Zoo.
I used to be instructed that many American individuals, particularly kids, have been actually reluctant to say goodbye to the pandas, and went to the zoo to see them off, Xi stated in his speech. He added that he realized the San Diego Zoo and folks in California very a lot sit up for welcoming pandas again.
Xi is in California to attend a summit of Indo-Pacific leaders and for his assembly with Biden. He made no point out of the pandas throughout his public remarks earlier within the day as he met with Biden.
When bilateral relations started to bitter previously few years, members of the Chinese language public began to demand the return of large pandas. Unproven allegations that U.S. zoos mistreated the pandas, referred to as Chinas nationwide treasure, flooded Chinas social media.
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However relations confirmed indicators of stabilization as Xi traveled to San Francisco to satisfy with Biden. The 2 males met for about 4 hours Wednesday on the picturesque Filoli Historic Home & Backyard, the place they agreed to cooperate on anti-narcotics, resume high-level navy communications and increase people-to-people exchanges.
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The Nationwide Zoos change settlement with the China Wildlife Conservation Affiliation had been set to run out in early December and negotiations to resume or lengthen the deal didn’t produce outcomes.
The San Diego Zoo returned its pandas in 2019, and the final bear on the Memphis, Tennessee, zoo went dwelling earlier this yr.
Related Press author Ashraf Khalil in Washington contributed to this report.
