Edinburgh Zoo to receive two giant pandas through loan program with China
LONDON — Call it panda politics.
China is sending a pair of giant pandas to the Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland as the Asian nation's deputy leader visits the U.K. to boost relations.
Vice Premier Li Keqiang, in London for trade talks with senior British officials, led the signing of the agreement Monday to send the animals to Edinburgh.
A zoo spokeswoman says the male and female pandas are about 7 years old. They will be on a 10-year loan to the zoo and are expected to arrive in the next year from China's Wolong Panda Research Institute.
Li, who is widely expected to succeed Wen Jiabao as China's next premier, is on a four-day visit to Britain to cement trade deals after trips to Spain and Germany.
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-- Associated Press
Photo: Yangguang, a giant panda at the Wolong Panda Research Institute in China's Sichuan province in an undated photo. Credit: Edinburgh Zoo / Associated Press
DOES THAT MEAN THAT OTHER ANIMALS WILL BE SHOT TO MAKE ROOM FOR THEM, LIKE MERSYSIDE SAFARI PARK, JUST WONDERING !!!!
Posted by: susan harwood | January 11, 2011 at 09:50 AM