Two giant pandas are set to arrive at Zoo Atlanta in the coming days, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Thursday during a press conference at the White House.
“The giant panda has been an envoy of friendship between the Chinese and American people,” Xi said in a translated statement. “Here, I have a piece of good news. In a few days, two pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Xuan, will come to their new home in Zoo Atlanta and meet with the American people.”
The pandas were first announced as the newest residents of Zoo Atlanta ahead of President Donald Trump’s planned visit to Beijing in May. The arrival marks the latest chapter in the decadeslong practice of “panda diplomacy,” in which China loans giant pandas to foreign countries as a gesture of goodwill and a form of soft power.
The United States and China began their panda diplomacy in the 1970s, when Beijing gifted pandas to the U.S. in a move that signaled a thawing relationship between Beijing and Washington.
The two pandas heading to Atlanta are male Ping Ping and female Fu Shuang, both of whom were born at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China.
“Zoo Atlanta is delighted and honored to yet again be trusted as stewards of this treasured species and to partner with the China Wildlife Conservation Association on the continued conservation and research efforts that are the most important outcomes of this cooperation,” Zoo Atlanta President and CEO Raymond B. King said in April. “We can’t 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 new arrivals will return giant pandas to Atlanta nearly two years after the zoo’s previous pandas left for China.
FedEx’s plane to transport the pandas from China to the U.S. (AP Newsroom)
Zoo Atlanta’s previous agreement with China began in 1999 and lasted 25 years. During that partnership, the zoo’s original panda pair, Lun Lun and Yang Yang, had seven offspring between 2006 and 2016.
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The pair and their offspring returned to China in October 2024, where they now live at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.
The new pandas will likely travel to Atlanta aboard a dedicated FedEx Boeing 777 cargo flight, dubbed the “FedEx Panda Express.” On previous trips, the pandas were the only cargo aboard the flight aside from supplies, including bamboo, water, and their preferred treats.
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[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
