Panda diplomacy

Xing Ya, a captive giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) held at Ouwehands Zoo.

Panda diplomacy is thought to have started as early as the Tang Dynasty in the 7th century when Empress Wu Zeitan sent a pair of bears (believed to be pandas) to Japan. This Chinese policy of sending pandas as diplomat gifts was revived in 1941, on the eve of the United States entering World War II, when Beijing sent two pandas to the Bronx Zoo as a “thank you” gift.

Chairman Mao frequently engaged in panda diplomacy in the 1950s, sending bears as gifts to China’s communist allies (such as North Korea and the Soviet Union). Two months after Richard Nixon’s landmark trip to China in 1972, which ended 25 years of isolation and tension between the United States and the People’s Republic, the president and his wife, Pat, greeted an adorable pair named Hsing-Hsing and Ling-Ling. This gift from Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai created a nationwide “Panda-Monium,” causing American zoos from the Bronx to San Diego to fiercely lobby the White House to become the pandas’ new home¹.

The tradition saw a significant shift in 1984 when China amended its panda protocols. Moving forward, the animals would only be sent out on 10-year loans, would require payment of a standard annual fee (for the U.S. it was $1 million) and decreed that all cubs birthed from loaned pandas were Chinese citizens, regardless of place of birth.

Panda diplomacy has changed over time. From 1941 to 1984, China gifted pandas to other countries. After a change in policy in 1984, pandas were leased instead of gifted. The tradition saw a significant shift in 1984 when China amended its panda protocols. Moving forward, the animals would only be sent out on 10-year loans, would require payment of a standard annual fee (for the U.S. it was $1 million) and decreed that all cubs birthed from loaned pandas were Chinese citizens, regardless of place of birth.

Panda diplomacy shifted again in 2008 after an earthquake hit Sichuan province and severely damaged wild panda habitat and the Wolong Nature Reserve and Breeding Center. The sudden event spurred fundraising efforts by the government, not only through the renewal of existing panda loans but also the extension of new ones.

Examples of panda diplomacy

• In 1941, on the eve of the United States entering World War II, Beijing sent two pandas to the Bronx Zoo as a “thank you” gift.
• Chairman Mao frequently engaged in panda diplomacy in the 1950s, sending bears as gifts to China’s communist allies (such as North Korea and the Soviet Union).
• Two months after Richard Nixon’s landmark trip to China in 1972, which ended 25 years of isolation and tension between the United States and the People’s Republic, the president and his wife, Pat, greeted an adorable pair named Hsing-Hsing and Ling-Ling. This gift from Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai created a nationwide “Panda-Monium,” causing American zoos from the Bronx to San Diego to fiercely lobby the White House to become the pandas’ new home.
• In 1957, China gifted a giant panda named Ping Ping to the Soviet Union after it became the first nation to establish diplomatic relations with China. Just two years later, a second giant panda named An An was sent as Ping Ping’s pair.
• In 2017, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese President Xi Jinping appeared with a pair of pandas named Meng Meng and Jiao Qing in front of the world’s media in Berlin. The pandas were loaned by the Chinese government to Berlin’s Tierpark Zoo for the next 15 years at an annual cost of $1 million.
• In 2021, Singapore’s giant pandas Kai Kai and Jia Jia - both on loan from China - had a cub of their own.

See also

• List of captive giant pandas

External links

• A Brief History of Panda Diplomacy The New York Times
• China's panda ambassadors BBC
• Panda politics: the hard truth about China’s cuddliest diplomat ft.com