China will send two young giant pandas to Washington, the National Zoo said on Wednesday (May 29), months after the zoo returned three bears amid heightened tensions between the two global superpowers. - REUTERS
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00:00 >> China will be sending two young giant pandas to the U.S.
00:05 The national zoo in Washington, D.C. said on Wednesday.
00:09 It's been just months since the zoo returned three bears to China amid heightened tensions
00:14 between the global superpowers.
00:16 Brandi Smith is the zoo's director.
00:19 >> I am here to say that it is official.
00:21 We are welcoming giant pandas back to our nation's capital by the end of this year.
00:28 >> Yes, absolutely.
00:31 The Smithsonian and the China wildlife conservation association have reached a 10 year cooperative
00:39 breeding and research agreement for giant pandas.
00:44 Our new bears are Bao Li and Qing Bao.
00:47 >> The announcement follows increased engagement between Washington and Beijing which has put
00:52 the relationship on a steadier footing since hitting historic lows last year.
00:57 China's ambassador to the U.S. said the new panda cooperation agreement was a very good
01:02 sign for U.S. China relations.
01:05 >> So far China has worked with 20 countries on panda conservation.
01:10 The United States was among the first.
01:14 Together our researchers have successfully bred 17 pandas, panda cubs and solved a number
01:22 of technical challenges.
01:24 The national zoo is an important participant in the process.
01:29 >> China's communist government has long used panda diplomacy to enhance the country's soft
01:34 power, lending the bears to zoos in various countries over the decades as goodwill animal
01:39 ambassadors.
01:41 Including in 1972 when Beijing presented two giant pandas as gifts to the U.S. after President
01:47 Richard Nixon's historic cold war visit.