“Panda diplomacy” gave the United States its first giant pandas in 1972. But China’s changing priorities will soon deprive U.S. panda fans of their beloved bears.
The National Zoo's first two giant pandas, Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, play in their yard in Washington on April 20, 1974, two years after their arrival from China. Sure, they’re cute and cuddly. But for more than 50 years, Chinese giant pandas have also been powerfully strategic — a diplomatic tool methodically deployed to shore up alliances, woo new partners and build goodwill.
As a result, one question now weighs heavily on the hearts of diplomats, Sino-American experts and zoo-going children alike: When, if ever, will pandas return to America?As a Chinese national symbol, pandas are a relatively new development. The United States has long had the bald eagle, and Russia its bear. But before China’s Communist revolution in 1949, other animals were much more prominently used as cultural icons: dragon, phoenix, tiger, crane.
A 2013 Oxford University study revealed that the timing of China’s panda agreements with Canada, France and Australia coincided with uranium deals and contracts with those countries. Experts have found that panda exchanges with neighbors like Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand correlated with signed free-trade agreements. AIn recent years, panda recipients have included European countries such as Finland, the Netherlands and Denmark.
The pandas taught her what it meant to love. She visited them on weekends, days off and vacations. She began a group calledfor fans in Washington and beyond. The enthusiasts held silent auctions to raise money for the pandas, designed pins and had fundraisers for the zoo. “It’s a clever move by China to bring back the pandas. They can claim there’s nothing explicit in the action, but pandas are always political,” said E. Elena Songster, author of “Panda Nation: The Construction and Conservation of China’s Modern Icon.” “The difficulty is understanding exactly what the message is that’s being sent.”
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