Panda Diplomacy: A Big Deal for China

2min Snip

00:00

Play full episode

Summary

Transcript

Episode notes

There are around 20 countries currently borrowing pandas from the Chinese government. The official body which arranges these loans of pandas also had a look and said that Yahya is actually just quite old and suffering from a skin condition. So if even officials normally given to making a big deal of this are saying it's not what you think, then why is this such a big deal? Panda diplomacy is actually a big deal for China.

Perhaps the only surprising thing about the former president’s arraignment was that it was not followed by big demonstrations—but he did take to the airwaves to seethe. A global rice crisis is brewing; the world’s most important crop is fuelling both climate change and diabetes. And what connects leased pandas in America and Chinese nationalists’ anger.

For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, try a free 30-day digital subscription by going to www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer