The two pandas, named Yunchuan and Xinbao, flew on a charter flight from China to the United States on Thursday, where they will live at the San Diego Zoo, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said at a briefing on Thursday.
⠀
“This morning pandas Yunchuan and Xinbao took a charter flight to the San Diego Zoo in the United States,” the diplomat said.
⠀
Mao Ning noted that China and the United States have made all necessary preparations to ensure safe and healthy air travel for pandas.
⠀
Earlier, China Central Television reported that vehicles from Yunchuan and Xinbao left the China Giant Panda Conservation and Research Center, located in Sichuan province, on Wednesday evening.
⠀
Panda Xinbao is a female, born on July 23, 2020, as the TV channel noted, she is affectionate and smart. Yunchuan is a male, born on July 28, 2019, the TV channel called him smart and active.
⠀
The report noted that after the pandas arrive at the San Diego Zoo, Chinese specialists will remain there for about three months to accompany the animals during the quarantine period and help them quickly adapt to their new habitat.
⠀
Pandas in zoos around the world are part of China’s diplomatic strategy. The PRC willingly shares the animals, but with a number of conditions: pandas remain the property of China, as do their offspring.
The number of pandas in the wild, as Zhang Yue, a spokesman for the State Forestry and Steppe Administration of the People’s Republic of China, said earlier this year, has increased from 1,100 individuals in the 1980s to almost 1,900 individuals today.
