China sends giant pandas to the US for the first time in two decades

The country sent Yun Chuan, a four-year-old male panda, and Xin Bao, a female who will turn four in July, from the Bifengxia Giant Panda Base to the San Diego Zoo, where they will live for the next ten years.

Four giant pandas at Chongqing Zoo celebrate their 5th birthday, attracting tourists in Chongqing, China, 23 June, 2024. (Photo by Imaginechina/Sipa USA) *** Local Caption *** 54181797 — File image of a giant panda bear at the Chongquing Zoo celebrating its fifth birthday on June 23, 2024.(Imagine China/Sipa USA / Cordon Press)

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Rosana Rábago Sainz

27 de junio, 2024

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This Wednesday, China resumed sending giant panda bears to the United States after a twenty-year hiatus. The country decided to send Yun Chuan, a four-year-old male panda, and Xin Bao, a female that will turn four years old in July. They will leave the Bifengxia Giant Panda Base and will be sent to the San Diego Zoo, where they will live for the next ten years.

The farewell ceremony for both giant pandas was attended by San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria. He posted a statement on X saying that he felt "honored to have been invited to join in the farewell ceremonies in China of Yun Chuan and Xin Bao":

Both animals are part of what is known as "panda diplomacy," a collaboration between the United States and China aimed at easing tensions. These agreements have deteriorated over time, to the extent that last year, China reclaimed its three pandas from Washington D.C.

Giant Panda Tian Tian rests in its enclosure at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, DC, on November 7, 2023, on the pants final day of viewing before returning to China. All three of the zoo's pandas are leaving for China by the end of the year, bringing at least a temporary end to a decades-old connection between the cuddly animal and the US capital. And while the pandas' departure had been expected due to contractual obligations, many can't help but see the shift as reflective of the growing strains between Beijing and Washington.

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Smithsonian National Zoo's giant pandas leave the United States for China

Rosana Rábago Sainz

Now, the collaboration has resumed and for the first time since 2019, the San Diego Zoo will once again have panda bears.

However, visiting Yun Chuan and Xin Bao will not be possible just yet. According to the zoo, the giant pandas will take some time to adjust to their new home so they will not be available for public viewing immediately.

To help them adapt, giant panda keeper Huang Shan told NBC News that the giant pandas will be accompanied by keepers and veterinarians from China and the United States. They will also be with American panda experts who have previously worked in China and "got to know them well."

In addition, Chinese veterinarians and caretakers will also spend a total of three months in San Diego to ensure that the giant pandas properly settle into what will be their new home for the next decade.