BEIJING — China will send two young giant pandas to Washington, the National Zoo said on May 29, months after the zoo returned three of the bears amid heightened tensions between the two global superpowers.

The announcement follows increased engagement between Washington and Beijing that has put ties on a steadier footing since relations hit historic lows in 2023.

The Smithsonian's National Zoo said in a statement it will welcome pandas named Bao Li and Qing Bao to the zoo in Washington by the end of 2024.

China's Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng, speaking to reporters at the zoo, encouraged people to "care for China-US relations just as you care for pandas".

"For the well-being of both peoples and the future of the world, China and the United States should choose to be partners, not rivals. Panda huggers should not be stigmatised. If there should be any protectionism, then let us protect biodiversity," Xie said.

Dr Brandie Smith, director of the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI), said the institute was thrilled about the continuation of the breeding and conservation partnership, noting that one of the bears is a descendent of pandas previously in Washington.

"This historic moment is proof positive that our collaboration with Chinese colleagues has made an irrefutable impact," she said.

Bao Li is a two-year-old male. His mother was born at the institute in 2013 and his grandparents Tian and Mei Xiang lived at NZCBI from 2000 to 2023. Qing Bao is a two-year-old female born to Qing Qing and mother Jia Mei.

Once they arrive, the pair of pandas will be quarantined for 30 days and then have a few more weeks to settle into their new habitat, the zoo said. A public debut date has yet to be set.

The departure of the three pandas from the zoo in November as loan agreements lapsed left Georgia's Zoo Atlanta as the only one in the US with giant pandas, and that loan deal is set to expire later in 2024.

Chinese President Xi Jinping hinted that he was open to sending more of the "envoys of friendship" to the US after meeting US President Joe Biden in November in California, where the two men agreed to step up communication despite an intensifying geopolitical rivalry.

Xi's remarks prompted the White House to say the US would "absolutely welcome" the bears.

China's communist government has long used "panda diplomacy" to enhance the country's soft power, lending the large but cuddly looking black-and-white bears to zoos in various countries over the decades as goodwill animal ambassadors.

The announcement on May 29 is a clear sign of Beijing's approval of stabilised ties with Washington.

Beijing presented two giant pandas as gifts to the US in 1972 after then President Richard Nixon's historic Cold War visit to the country.

Other pandas have since been loaned to the US for research and educational purposes, and the bears have perennially been a top attraction at zoos, drawing millions of adoring visitors.

China's Wildlife Conservation Association said in February it was working with the National Zoo on arrangements that could bring more pandas back to the US, including to the San Diego Zoo.

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Source: Reuters