Panda diplomacy is back: China sending two bears to Washington

WASHINGTON - China is to send giant pandas to Washington's National Zoo, US First Lady Jill Biden and officials said on Wednesday, in a surprise announcement signalling a new era of panda diplomacy between the superpowers.

Bao Li and Qing Bao will arrive in the United States before the end of the year under a decade-long breeding and research agreement, the zoo said in a statement celebrating the return of animals "beloved around the nation and the world."

"We are excited for children near and far to once again enjoy the giant pandas' adorable and joyful adventures at our @NationalZoo," the first lady posted on X.

Amid soaring tensions between Washington and Beijing, only a handful of the iconic black and white bears remain in the United States, with three having left the National Zoo in Washington six months ago.

But President Xi Jinping said after meeting President Joe Biden at a summit in California last November that China could send new pandas as "envoys of friendship between the Chinese and American people."

The White House said it would be happy to have more of the bamboo-chewing mammals.

"We're thrilled to announce the next chapter of our breeding and conservation partnership begins by welcoming two new bears, including a descendent of our beloved panda family, to Washington DC," said Brandie Smith of the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. 

"This historic moment is proof positive our collaboration with Chinese colleagues has made an irrefutable impact." 

China has been using so-called "panda diplomacy" since 1972, when the first animals were sent to the United States as a gift, following president Richard Nixon's historic visit to the Communist nation.

Strained relations between the rival superpowers in recent years have led Beijing to call some of the pandas back home.