Panda lovers in the United States are hopeful for the return of the bears following a comment from Chinese President Xi Jinping last week. Speaking at a dinner with American business leaders on Wednesday night, President Xi said, "We are ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation and do our best to meet the wishes of the Californians so as to deepen the friendly ties between our two peoples.” The Chinese president added, “I was told that many American people, especially children, were really reluctant to say goodbye to the pandas, and went to the zoo to see them off.” Xi’s comment came just one week after the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. sent its three pandas Mei Xiang, Tian Tian, and their cub, a baby panda, Xiao Qi Ji back to China. This is the second time this year that panda exchange agreements between the United States and China have ended. The last panda at the zoo in Memphis, Tennessee went home earlier this year. The San Diego Zoo returned its pandas in 2019. Now, the only pandas in the U.S. are at the Atlanta Zoo, but that agreement will expire next year. Many American observers of U.S.-China relations have thought that China was slowly taking its bears back in answer to unease with Western governments. But Xi’s comment at a dinner alongside the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation raised the possibility of continuing panda diplomacy. Although Xi did not specifically provide information about returning pandas to the U.S., experts say his statement is a sure sign that the exchange program would be restarted.
