Wang Wang and Fu Ni are the only giant pandas in the southern hemisphere. The giant pandas are on loan from China and have lived in Adelaide zoo for the last 15 years. The pandas were loaned to Australia in 2009, under an initial 10-year agreement, which was extended by 5 years in 2019. Australia pays China around $1m dollars to keep the pandas in the country. The contract is likely up for discussion again as China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, visits Australia this week The Guardian
Tag: Giant pandas
How two giant pandas loaned to Adelaide zoo tell the story of the ups and downs of China-Australia relations
They might be cute and cuddly, but Australia’s only giant pandas are in fact expensive – though nonverbal – Chinese diplomats. The fate of Wang Wang and Fu Ni, who have called Adelaide zoo home for the last 15 years, will be decided on Wednesday after a meeting between Australian politicians and China’s foreign minister, Wang Yi. The pandas arrived in Australia in 2009 after being relocated from China’s Wolong national nature reserve. It was the first time pandas had been held in Australia and the first time in the…
Beloved giant panda given to Taiwan by China dies aged 18 after seizures
A panda given to Taiwan by China 14 years ago as a symbol of what were then warmer ties died on Saturday, after suffering seizures, Taipei zoo said. Tuan Tuan and his breeding mate Yuan Yuan were given to Taiwan by Beijing in late 2008, at a time when relations between the two were more cordial. China views Taiwan as part of its territory and has vowed to one day bring the self-ruled democratic island into its fold, by force if necessary. “Our medical team has confirmed that Tuan Tuan’s…