Lovely??Panda?Diplomats

Pandas are not only a national treasure， but are loved around the world.

A giant panda cub born in last August at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo， US， was given the name Xiao Qi Ji （little miracle）. The choice was the result of a five-day online vote that drew nearly 135，000 voters in the US. Interestingly， National Public Radio said that in a nod to Chinese tradition， the name was not chosen until 100 days after the birth.

This cub’s birth proved to be quite inspiring—and at a time when inspiration was truly needed.

“Xiao Qi Ji’s birth is a true miracle that has been so uplifting to all of us during the pandemic，” Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai said in a video congratulatory message. “We are connected again in the growth of our little ambassador， and in our shared joy and friendship.”

The furry black-and-white animals have played an important role in the country’s diplomacy， known as “panda diplomacy”.

熊貓不僅是中國的國寶，而且深受全世界的喜愛。

史密森學會國家動物園一只在2020年8月出生的大熊貓幼崽獲名“小奇跡”。美國近13.5萬人經過五天的線上投票，最終選出了這個名字。有趣的是，美國國家公共電臺稱，為尊重中國傳統(tǒng)，熊貓寶寶出生百日后才取了這個名字。

這只幼崽的誕生非常鼓舞人心——是在人們確確實實需要鼓舞的時候。

“‘小奇跡’的誕生是一個真正的奇跡，疫情之下，所有人都為此備感鼓舞?！敝袊v美國大使崔天凱在一段祝賀視頻中表示，“這位‘小大使’的成長再次把我們聯系到了一起，讓我們分享歡愉，再續(xù)友誼?！?/p>

這種毛茸茸的、黑白相間的動物在中國外交舞臺上扮演著重要角色，被稱為“熊貓外交”。

According to the Japanese Royal Annual， the practice dates back to the Tang Dynasty， when Empress Wu Zetian sent a pair of pandas to the Japanese emperor.

China revived panda diplomacy in the 1950s when China sent two pandas to the Moscow Zoo. By 1982， China had given 23 pandas to nine different countries. However， most of them have died. China stopped giving away pandas in the early 1980s. Instead， the animals are loaned to other countries. In general， they are to be returned to China after 10 years.

But why do these cute “diplomats” find it hard to survive in other countries？ According to Xinhua， their dietary habit is one significant reason. Their nutrition mostly comes from bamboo shoots. Adult giant pandas consume about 40 kilograms of bamboo daily. Pandas can also be quite picky. They refuse to eat bamboo shoots after they have blossomed.

It takes 10 years for a new crop of bamboo to mature， and many countries do not have an environment suitable for bamboo growth. This means that food has to be imported. Last August， Calgary Zoo in Canada announced that due to pandemic-related changes in its import laws and quarantine methods， they couldn’t provide enough fresh bamboo for pandas. This meant that they had to send two giant pandas back to China.

But countries are still trying their best to facilitate this special type of diplomacy. “We don’t own pandas， but the whole world wants to help save the panda， and we do that through our knowledge exchange，” Steven Monfort， director of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo， told China Daily.

據《日本皇家年鑒》記載，“熊貓外交”可追溯到唐代，當時女皇武則天贈給日本天皇一對大熊貓。

20世紀50年代，我國恢復了“熊貓外交”，將兩只大熊貓送往莫斯科動物園。截至1982年，中國將23只熊貓贈予9個國家。然而，這些大熊貓多數均死亡。20世紀80年代初，中國不再贈送大熊貓，而是將大熊貓租借于別國。通常，這些熊貓會在10年后返回中國。

為什么這些可愛的“外交官”很難在其他國家生存呢？據新華社報道，熊貓的飲食習慣是一個重要原因。它們的營養(yǎng)補給大多來自竹筍。成年大熊貓每天約消耗40千克的竹子。而且大熊貓非常挑食，不吃開了花的竹筍。

一批新竹子需要10年才能成熟，而且許多國家沒有適宜竹子生長的環(huán)境。這就意味著需要進口食物。2020年8月，加拿大卡爾加里動物園宣布，由于疫情導致進口法規(guī)和檢疫方法有變，他們無法為大熊貓?zhí)峁┏渥愕男迈r竹子。這意味著他們不得不把兩只大熊貓送回中國。

但各國依舊正在盡全力促進這種特殊外交?！拔覀儾⒉粨碛写笮茇?，但全世界都想努力拯救大熊貓，我們通過交流知識來做到這點?！笔访苌瓕W會國家動物園主管史蒂文·蒙福特在接受《中國日報》采訪時表示。

Word Study

ambassador /?m'b?s?d?（r）/ n. 大使;使節(jié)

loan /l??n/ v. 借出;貸與 n. 貸款;借款

The bank is happy to loan money to small businesses.

It took three years to repay my student loan.

import /'?mp??t/ v. & n. 進口;輸入;引進

The country has to import most of its raw materials.

The report calls for a ban on the import of waste.

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