China to send two giant pandas to Atlanta in the US again

Atlanta will have giant pandas againChina on Friday announced it will send two giant pandas to Zoo Atlanta in the US in Beijings latest efforts of panda diplomacy despite tensions with Washington and less than a month before a muchanticipated visit by US President Donald Trump to BeijingThe China Wildlife Conservation Association said in a statement that male panda Ping Ping and female panda Fu Shuang from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding will kick off a decadelong conservation cooperation under an agreement it signed with the zoo last yearThe association did not specify their departure date but said the US side was actively carrying out facility upgrades among other preparation work to create a more comfortable and safer environment for the pair In the meantime Chinese experts were providing technical guidance on the upgrades it saidThe announcement came weeks ahead of Trumps planned visit to China in midMay during which he is expected to discuss various issues including trade with his counterpart Xi JinpingZoo Atlanta said in a statement Thursday that it was delighted and honored to be trusted as stewards of the pandas and to partner with the associationWe cant wait to meet Ping Ping and Fu Shuang and to welcome our members guests city and community back to the wonder and joy of giant pandas the zoos president Raymond B King saidDuring an earlier giant panda agreement between the zoo and China that concluded in 2024 pandas Lun Lun and Yang Yang gave birth to seven bears the zoo said Lun Lun and Yang Yan and their two youngest offspring left Atlanta for China in October 2024 where the rest of their offspring reside it saidChinas giant panda loan program has long been known as a tool of Beijings softpower diplomacy but its conservation significance could have been an important reason Beijing is renewing its cooperation with US zoos at a time of otherwise sour relationsThe association said Friday that the new round of cooperation will help China and the US to yield more results in areas ranging from disease prevention and treatment to scientific exchangesGiant pandas have long been a symbol of the USChina friendship ever since Beijing gifted a pair of pandas to the National Zoo in Washington in 1972In 2024 the National Zoo in Washington and the San Diego Zoo also received pandas from China