Doha, Europe Brief News – China gave Qatar two giant pandas as a gift ahead of the World Cup.
This is the first time China has extended its “panda diplomacy” to the Middle East.
Chinese ambassador to Qatar, Zhou Jian, said that pandas named “Suhail” and “Soraya” would arrive in the country next month, ahead of the football tournament that will start on November 20.
Si Hai, a 3-year-old female weighing about 150 pounds, will be given the Arabic name Thuraya, while Jing Jing, a 4-year-old male weighing 265 pounds, will be known in Arabic as Suhail.
About 1,800 pounds of fresh bamboo — which pandas eat almost exclusively — will be flown in for them every week.
Although the Chinese national team did not qualify for the soccer tournament, Chinese companies have been involved in the construction of major projects for the event, including the main stadium.
Giant pandas, a vulnerable species that seldom reproduces in the wild, are considered a national treasure and symbol of China.
There are about 1,800 in the wild, and an additional 600 living in captivity.
China has sent pandas to about 20 countries, including the United States, as a diplomatic tool to improve ties with foreign nations, but Qatar is the first country to receive them in the Middle East.
In recent years, China has been strengthening its relations with countries in the region, even as diplomatic issues like tensions over Taiwan and Russia’s war in Ukraine strain its ties with the West.
