Panda diplomacy - wikipedia Panda diplomacy Giant panda in the National Zoo in Washington D.C. Panda diplomacy is China 's use of giant pandas as diplomatic gifts to other countries. The practice existed as far back as the Tang Dynasty, when Empress Wu Zetian ( 625 -- 705 ) sent a pair of pandas to the Japanese emperor. Contents 1 Pandas in Chinese politics 2 Offer of pandas to Taiwan 3 Other animals as diplomatic gifts 4 See also 5 References Pandas in Chinese politics U.S. First Lady Pat Nixon viewing the Beijing Zoo panda exhibit in February 1972. The People 's Republic of China used panda diplomacy in the 1950s and has become known in recent decades for this practice. From 1958 to 1982, China gave 23 pandas to nine different countries. One highlight of panda diplomacy was the Chinese government 's gift of two pandas, Ling - Ling and Hsing - Hsing, to the United States in 1972 after President Richard Nixon 's historic visit to China ( President Nixon reciprocated by sending back a pair of musk oxen ). Upon the pandas ' arrival in April 1972, First Lady Pat Nixon donated the pandas to the National Zoo in Washington D.C., where she welcomed them in an official ceremony. Over twenty thousand people visited the pandas the first day they were on display, and an estimated 1.1 million visitors came to see them the first year they were in the United States. The pandas were wildly popular and China 's gift was seen as an enormous diplomatic success, evidence of China 's eagerness to establish official relations with the U.S. It was so successful that British Prime Minister Edward Heath asked for pandas for the United Kingdom during a visit to China in 1974. Chia - Chia and Ching - Ching therefore arrived at the London Zoo a few weeks later. By 1984, however, pandas were no longer used purely as agents of diplomacy. Instead, China began to offer pandas to other nations only on ten - year loans. The standard loan terms include a fee of up to US $1,000,000 per year and a provision that any cubs born during the loan be the property of the People 's Republic of China. Since 1998, because of a World Wildlife Fund lawsuit, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service allows a U.S. zoo to import a panda only if the zoo can ensure that China will channel more than half of its loan fee into conservation efforts for wild pandas and their habitat. Pandas have become important diplomatic symbols, not only to China. In a visit by Hu Jintao to Japan in May 2008, China announced the loan of two pandas to Japan. The President was quoted as saying `` Giant pandas are very popular among the Japanese, and they are a symbol of the friendly ties between Japan and China. '' Actions that other countries take with pandas are often seen as laden with meaning. For example, British diplomats worried that a 1964 transfer of a panda from a London zoo to Moscow would worsen Sino - Soviet relations. In January 2006, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick was photographed hugging a 5 - month - old panda cub during his visit to Sichuan Province. The image was widely broadcast by the Chinese media and was purportedly interpreted as a sign that Zoellick supported better relations between China and the United States. On 16 April 2014, China had planned to send a pair of pandas named Fu Wa and Feng Yi to Malaysia to mark their 40 years diplomatic ties but were postponed following the MH370 tragedy. The two pandas later arrived in Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 21 May 2014 and placed at the National Zoo of Malaysia ( Zoo Negara ). Offer of pandas to Taiwan Main article : Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan Giant panda at Taipei Zoo In 2005, Lien Chan, chairman of the Kuomintang, the then - opposition party in Taiwan, visited mainland China. As part of the talks between Lien Chan and the Communist Party of China ( CPC ), two pandas ( later named Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan ; tuányuán ( simplified Chinese : 团圆 ) meaning `` reunion '' in Mandarin ) were offered as a gift to the people of Taiwan. While the idea was popular with the Taiwanese public, it proved difficult with the Republic of China ( ROC ) government of Taiwan, then led by the Democratic Progressive Party ( DPP ). The DPP supports Taiwanese independence and opposes unification with the People 's Republic of China, and saw the gift of pandas as an attempt by the CPC to draw the ROC government into its `` united front ''. While several zoos in Taiwan made bids to host the pandas, the ROC government raised objections, ostensibly on the grounds that pandas were not suited to the Taiwanese climate and that Taiwan did not have the expertise to rear pandas successfully. It was widely understood, however, that these were underlain by political considerations by the DPP - led government to maintain its distance from the PRC government. Another technical issue is a dispute over the applicability of Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species ( CITES ). In 1998, China offered the Republic of China two giant pandas in exchange for wartime peace. The PRC insisted that a transfer from mainland China to Taiwan was a domestic transfer, not subject to CITES, while the ROC government disputed this and would not accept the pandas without CITES procedures. On March 11, 2006, the ROC formally rejected the offer, with President Chen explaining in his weekly newsletter, `` A-bian ( Chen 's nickname ) sincerely urges the Chinese leaders to leave the giant pandas in their natural habitat, because pandas brought up in cages or given as gifts will not be happy ''. Following a change of government in Taiwan, in July 2008, the ROC government led by the Kuomintang stated that it would accept the gift of two four - year - old giant pandas. In December 2008, the government approved the import of pandas under the terms of `` species of traditional herbal medicine ''. Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan arrived at Taipei Zoo later in the same month, making international news. In response to the transfer, the CITES secretariat stated that the transfer of the two pandas was a matter of `` internal or domestic trade '', and so was not required to be reported to CITES. The ROC quickly issued a rebuttal to the CITES statement and clarified that the procedures for the transfer followed closely a country - to - country transfer. The ROC also noted that such procedures would not be needed if it were an internal / domestic transfer. The ROC further noted that Taiwan is not a CITES signatory and is therefore not obligated to report to the CITES Secretariat its acceptance of the two pandas. Other animals as diplomatic gifts Internationally, other rare animals appear as diplomatic / political gifts as well. For example, in the run - up to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, five Chinese sturgeons, symbolising the five Olympic rings, were given by China 's Central Government to Hong Kong. In 2009, the government of the Seychelles Islands announced its gift of a pair of Aldabra giant tortoises to the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai in celebration of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People 's Republic of China, and in appreciation of China 's assisting the small insular nation with the expenses of participating in the Expo. The two tortoises will be actually kept in Shanghai Zoo. The government of Mongolia has been gifting horses to visiting dignitaries. Those who have received Mongolia 's horses as a gift from its government include the President of South Korea Park Geun - hye, Vice President of India Mohammad Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, and the United States Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel. Presenting animals as gifts to dignitaries is an ongoing ritual that dates back centuries. The Song of Roland demonstrates how common this practice was in that even this poem, so focused on scenes of battle, bravery, and chivalry made space to describe the allure and temptation of owning exotic animals. See also Ping - pong diplomacy Ocean Park References Jump up ^ ( 1 ), Bullish on Bears, The Economist Magazine, September 14, 2017 ^ Jump up to : Mark Magnier, Attack of the Pandas, Los Angeles Times, March 21, 2006 ^ Jump up to : http://blog.nixonfoundation.org/2011/02/pat-nixon-and-panda-diplomacy/ Jump up ^ AFP ( May 7, 2008 ). `` Chinese leader hails warming with Japan on rare visit ''. Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2008 - 07 - 15. Jump up ^ Kate McGeown, China 's panda ambassadors, BBC News, May 3, 2005 Jump up ^ Edward Cody, U.S. Envoy Engages in Panda Diplomacy, Washington Post, January 26, 2006, p. A16 Jump up ^ `` China delays sending pandas to Malaysia out of respect for MH370 families ''. The Associated Press. Global News. 11 April 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Pandas arrive in Malaysia after MH370 delay ''. News24. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014. Jump up ^ `` Pandas arrive in Zoo Negara ''. The Star. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 21 May 2014. Jump up ^ Chris Hogg, Taiwan `` unlikely '' to want pandas, BBC News, January 9, 2006 ^ Jump up to : We 're not wild about your pandas, China told Jump up ^ Jane Macartney ( July 4, 2008 ). `` Comment : Where airlines go, panda diplomacy may follow ''. Times Online. Retrieved 2008 - 07 - 15. Jump up ^ SEF rejects CITES ' interpretation of ' domestic transfer ' of pandas. Taiwan News. December 24, 2008 Jump up ^ PANDA DIPLOMACY : CITES secretary says panda transport need not be reported Jump up ^ Taiwan 's status not belittled in pandas ' delivery : MAC Jump up ^ http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2008/12/25/2003431994 PANDA DIPLOMACY : Use of ' domestic ' by CITES secretariat was wrong : MAC Jump up ^ `` '' Living fossil of fish '' Chinese sturgeons debut in HK ``. Xinhua. 20 June 2008. Jump up ^ Seychelles presents giant tortoises to organizer Jump up ^ http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/news/2016/07/17/0200000000AEN20160717003400315.html Jump up ^ http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/mongolian-president-gifts-horse-to-ansari/1/716062.html Jump up ^ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Why-PM-Modi-left-Kanthaka-in-Mongolia/articleshow/47451105.cms Jump up ^ https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/hagel-wraps-up-asia-trip-with-stop-in-mongolia/2014/04/10/d2d03492-c095-11e3-bcec-b71ee10e9bc3_story.html Foreign relations of China Bilateral relations Africa Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Comoros Congo, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Djibouti Egypt Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Ethiopia Gabon Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea - Bissau Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Rwanda São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia South Africa South Sudan Sudan Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe Americas Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Bahamas Barbados Bolivia Brazil Canada Chile Cuba Ecuador Grenada Jamaica Mexico Panama Peru Suriname Trinidad and Tobago United States Uruguay Venezuela Asia Afghanistan Armenia Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia East Timor India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Laos Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal North Korea Pakistan Palestine Philippines Russia Saudi Arabia Singapore South Korea Sri Lanka Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Thailand United Arab Emirates Vietnam Yemen Europe Albania Belgium Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Finland France Germany Greece Iceland Ireland Italy Lithuania Luxembourg Montenegro Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Russia Serbia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine United Kingdom Vatican City Oceania Australia Fiji Kiribati Micronesia New Zealand Niue Papua New Guinea Samoa Tonga Vanuatu Multilateral relations Bangladesh -- China -- India -- Myanmar Forum for Regional Cooperation BIMSTEC Africa Arab League BRICS Caribbean China -- Japan -- South Korea European Union Latin America China and the United Nations Oceania Third World Arctic policy of China China and the Antarctic Diplomacy Ministry of Foreign Affairs ( Foreign Minister ) Diplomatic missions of China / in China Stadium diplomacy Panda diplomacy Theater diplomacy Nine - Dash Line String of Pearls Belt and Road Initiative Confucius Institute Treaties Diplomacy and diplomats Roles Diplomatic leader titles Multilateral Permanent representative United Nations Ambassador - at - large Resident representative Bilateral - national Ambassador High commissioner Nuncio Chargé d'affaires Head of mission Deputy chief of mission Bilateral - subnational Consul Bilateral - insular Resident Resident commissioner Envoy Agent - general By portfolio ( Attaché ) Agricultural attaché Air attaché Chargé de mission Conseiller chargé des investissements Cultural attaché Military attaché Science attaché Trade commissioner Other roles Diplomatic courier Queen 's Messenger Foreign minister Classification Diplomatic rank Offices Apostolic Nunciature Consular corps Consulate De facto embassy Diplomatic corps Diplomatic mission High commission Legation Protecting power Types Caviar diplomacy Checkbook diplomacy Coercive diplomacy Commercial diplomacy Cultural diplomacy Defence diplomacy Digital diplomacy Dollar diplomacy Freelance diplomacy Full spectrum diplomacy Guerrilla diplomacy Gunboat diplomacy New diplomacy Panda diplomacy Paradiplomacy Pilgrimage diplomacy Ping - pong diplomacy Preventive diplomacy Public diplomacy Shuttle diplomacy Stadium diplomacy Topics Appeasement Consular assistance Consular immunity Diplomatic accreditation Diplomatic bag Diplomatic cable Diplomatic credentials Diplomatic history Diplomatic illness Diplomatic immunity Diplomatic law Diplomatic rank Diplomatic service Diplomatic uniform Protocol Documents Exequatur Letter of credence Letter of protest Other topics Development aid Agencies Parliamentary delegation Summit ( meeting ) Twin towns and sister cities Commons Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Panda_diplomacy&oldid=800582505 '' Categories : Foreign relations of China Giant pandas Animals as diplomatic gifts Talk Contents About Wikipedia Azərbaycanca Català Deutsch Français Հայերեն Bahasa Indonesia Русский سنڌي Tiếng Việt 中文 Edit links This page was last edited on 14 September 2017, at 12 : 41. 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Question: what is the panda a symbol of in china
Answer: diplomatic symbols