WASHINGTON Aug 29 The US and China prepare to repatriate pandas, which at the end of the year should return to their homeland from the National Zoo in Washington, said a representative of the Chinese Embassy.
The day before, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was unable to answer whether US President Joe Biden was going to raise the issue of extending the stay of three pandas in Washington at a potential meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
«China and the United States are carrying out appropriate procedures and are preparing the transfer in order to provide a safe way home for the panda family,» the source said, adding that the return of all three animals will take place «at the end of the year, as it was scheduled.»
At the same time, according to the diplomat, the countries will continue cooperation in the study of pandas and their conservation.
The giant panda is an unofficial symbol of China. In total, there are 1.6 thousand pandas in the world, of which only about three dozen live in captivity outside of China. The PRC practices the so-called panda diplomacy, periodically sending them to different countries. Pandas, however, continue to be considered the property of China in the same way as their offspring.