Panda diplomacy—the practice of loaning the charismatic bears to zoos around the world as goodwill ambassadors—is part of the Chinese government’s attempt to advance its goals, strengthen diplomatic ties, expand its influence, and share its history and culture. 

The deployment of these “envoys of friendship,” as Chinese president Xi Jinping called the pandas in 2023, is an example of soft power—the use of appeals and persuasion rather than force to achieve desired outcomes. If they can build up more affection toward their country, then it becomes a lot easier for China to convince other world leaders to partner with them and embrace their ideas. 

Panda diplomacy is a strategic long-term investment conducted with a strong sense of intention and planning, with China targeting nations that are geopolitically important. Last year, for example, Chinese premier Li Qiang offered to send two pandas to the Adelaide Zoo in Australia after ties between the two countries thawed following a dispute over agricultural and mineral exports. The arrival of pandas signifies that China’s relationship with the receiving country matters more than it did before. 

Chinese Communist Party leader Mao Zedong gifted the first pandas to the Soviet Union in 1957 to market the 40th anniversary of the October Revolution in Russia. Following President Richard Nixon’s historic trip to China in February 1972, Chinese premier Zhou Enlai gave two 18-month-old cubs to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo—a gift that capitalized on unscripted encounters between US and Chinese table tennis players, known famously as ping-pong diplomacy. Ling-Ling (“darling little girl”) and Hsing-Hsing (“bright star”) drew more than 1 million visitors during their first month on view and called Washington home for 20 years.

Around the 1980s, China stopped gifting pandas and established a loan-based program, which requires receiving countries to pay annual fees toward panda conservation, along with the cost of caring for the animals. Fixed-term contracts may be extended or renewed, but ultimately, all pandas must return to the China Wildlife Conservation Association, which owns the animals.

These loan agreements include a focus on research and conservation. When pandas come to the US, for example, extensive research is conducted on breeding, as it’s very difficult for pandas to reproduce. Females are only fertile for 24 to 72 hours each spring, and they typically only give birth to a single cub. All that data goes back with the pandas to China.

Only a few of the 700 or so pandas in captivity are housed in zoos in the US. Zoo Atlanta’s two pandas returned to China in fall 2024, and the Memphis Zoo’s loan agreement expired in 2023. Two pandas have been on exhibit since August 2024 at the San Diego Zoo, and the San Francisco Zoo is expecting a pair in spring 2026.

Another two pandas made their public debut at the National Zoo in January. Their arrival came nearly 15 months after Mei Xiang (“beautiful fragrance”), Tian Tian (“sweetie”), and son Xiao Qi Ji (“little miracle”) returned to China, marking the first time in 23 years that the nation’s capital was without pandas. 

It’s hard to know what if any impact the trade war between the US and China will have on panda diplomacy. China is likely counting on the pandas to help support the narrative that, regardless of the state of bilateral relations, it’s felt at the popular level. But China also likely wants to stress common values—including a shared concern for the environment and the survival of the species, which can transcend politics.

Panda diplomacy at a glance:

• China spends up to $8 billion per year on public diplomacy
• Bao Li (“active and vital power”) and Qing Bao (“green” and “treasure”) are the National Zoo’s 9th and 10th pandas
• As few as 1,864 pandas live in their native habitat; another 700 are in zoos and breeding centers
• China maintains 22 conservation projects in 18 countries 
• Zoos hosting pandas pay about $1 million annually to support conservation efforts in Sichuan Province
• In 2016, Pandas were downgraded from endangered species to threatened