What is panda diplomacy?
什么是熊猫外交？
China has about 1,800 pandas living in the wild, but it also has at least 65 more that are lent out to just over 20 countries around the world.
中国有大约1,800只大熊猫生活在野外，但也有至少65只被借给全球20多个国家。
The bears were first offered as diplomatic gifts by China as far back as the Tang Dynasty (618–907). The tradition has continued until this century and is often referred to as panda diplomacy.
早在唐朝（618-907）时，中国就首次将熊作为外交礼物了。这一传统一直延续到本世纪，通常被称为熊猫外交。
The US received its first pandas in 1972 after first lady Pat Nixon commented during a state function in China about her love for the animals.
1972年，美国收到了第一只大熊猫，因为第一夫人帕特·尼克松（Pat Nixon）在中国的一次国家活动中表达了她对大熊猫的热爱。
By 1984, panda diplomacy changed. The bears were no longer presented as gifts but instead were loaned for 10 years, a period that could be extended. This shift to panda lending allowed China to keep promoting its image abroad and also build “guanxi”, a Mandarin term for trust. Loaning pandas was seen as promoting mutual partnerships between China and the recipient countries.
到1984年，熊猫外交发生了变化。熊猫不再作为礼物赠送，而是租借10年，这个期限可以延长。这种向熊猫租借的转变使中国能够继续在国外推广其形象，并建立了“关系”，这是普通话中信任的术语。出租大熊猫被视为促进中国与其他国家之间的合作伙伴关系。
In turn, host countries would pay an annual fee of about $1m per bear, and there’s an understanding that panda cubs born abroad would have to be returned to China before their fourth birthdays.
反过来，租了熊猫的国家将支付每只约100万美元的年费，并且，在国外出生的熊猫幼崽必须在四岁之前返回中国。
Which countries have panda bears?
哪些国家有熊猫？
Experts at Oxford University who conducted a study on panda diplomacy noticed China leases the bears to countries that it has made trade deals with.
牛津大学（Oxford University）的专家对熊猫外交进行了一项研究，他们注意到中国将熊猫租给与其达成贸易协议的国家。
Kathleen Buckingham from Oxford’s School of Geography and the Environment, asked: ”Why has Edinburgh Zoo got pandas when London Zoo hasn’t? Probably because Scotland has natural resources that China wants a stake in.”
牛津大学地理与环境学院的凯瑟琳·白金汉（Kathleen Buckingham）问道：“为什么爱丁堡动物园有大熊猫，而伦敦动物园却没有？可能是因为苏格兰拥有中国想要的自然资源。
The pandas were sent to Scotland in 2011 after the two countries signed an oil deal.
在两国签署石油协议后，大熊猫于2011年被送往苏格兰。
The list of panda recipients is extensive. Some of the countries included are Denmark, Germany, Russia and Qatar.
接受熊猫租借的国家很多。其中包括丹麦，德国，俄罗斯和卡塔尔的一些国家。
Why are pandas going back to China?
大熊猫为什么要回到中国？
Three pandas that have been living at the National Zoo in Washington, DC, will be returning to China before the year ends.
一直生活在华盛顿特区国家动物园的三只大熊猫将在年底前送回中国。
The agreement had already been extended three times.
该协议已经延长了三次。
Four pandas remain at the Atlanta Zoo, but they’ll also be sent back next year if there’s no extension, meaning it will be the first time in five decades that the US will be without pandas.
亚特兰大动物园还剩下四只大熊猫，但如果没有延期，它们明年也会被送回去，这意味着这将是五十年来美国第一次没有大熊猫。
Panda bears from Scotland and Australia will also be heading home before the end of the year.
来自苏格兰和澳大利亚的熊猫熊也将在年底前回家。
Why are the panda loans not extended?
为什么熊猫租借不延期？
In the US case, analysts are speculating that the panda recall could be more than just the end of a loan agreement.
就美国而言，分析师猜测，熊猫召回可能不仅仅是租借协议的结束。
The US has strong trade deals with Taiwan and continues to sell defence equipment to its military, a move Beijing is less than pleased with.
美国与台湾有强有力的贸易协议，并继续向其军方出售国防设备，北京对此并不满意。
If the panda return does stem from deteriorating relations, it wouldn’t be the first time pandas have been a reflection of deeper political tensions.
如果熊猫回归确实源于关系恶化，那将不是熊猫第一次反映更深层次的政治紧张局势。
Bears delivered to the US in 2010 were sent back after President Barack Obama met with the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan leader living in exile.
2010年运往美国的熊猫是在美国总统巴拉克•奥巴马（Barack Obama）会见流亡藏人领袖达赖喇嘛（Dalai Lama）后被送回的。
And in 2013, after the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370 when Malaysian-Chinese ties were strained, China temporarily withheld the delivery of newly leased pandas to the country.
2013年，在马来西亚航空公司370航班失踪后，马中关系紧张，中国暂时停止向该国运送新租借的大熊猫。
Has a country ever said no to a panda?
曾经有谁对熊猫说过不吗？
Yes, in 2005, Taiwan rejected two pandas offered by China. They were named Tuan-Tuan and Yuan-Yuan, which mean unity and reunion. After the 2008 elections in Taiwan, which brought a new government to power, the pandas were accepted.
是的，在2005年，台湾拒绝了中国提供的两只大熊猫。他们被命名为团团和圆圆，意思是团圆。2008年台湾大选后，新政府上台，大熊猫被接受。
