Panda diplomacy settles cross-straits spat
BEIJING – A pair of giant pandas offered by the Chinese mainland to Taiwan will travel to the island next week, a mainland official has announced.
The two pandas in question, Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan, which together means “unificationâ€, were offered to China by Taiwan in 2005 during a visit to Beijing by Taiwan’s former Chinese Nationalist Party chairman, Lien Chan.
However, the transfer of the animals to Taipei Zoo was held up because of objections in Taiwan that China considered the export of the pandas as a “domestic transfer†and not a state-to-state movement.
The warming cross-Straits ties have now made their journey to Taiwan possible.
The four-year-old pandas, members of one of China’s most endangered species, have been living at a breeding base in Ya’an, Sichuan for the past several months.
Their previous home, the Wolong Nature Reserve, was seriously damaged in the strong earthquake that struck southwest China on May 12 this year.
Ian Jarrett
Have your say Cancel reply
Subscribe/Login to Travel Mole Newsletter
Travel Mole Newsletter is a subscriber only travel trade news publication. If you are receiving this message, simply enter your email address to sign in or register if you are not. In order to display the B2B travel content that meets your business needs, we need to know who are and what are your business needs. ITR is free to our subscribers.































TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Air Mauritius reduces frequencies to Europe and Asia for the holiday season
Major rail disruptions around and in Berlin until early 2026