This time, the two pandas offered by China to Qatar are named after stars: Soraya (Arabic name for the Pleiades star cluster) and Suhail (name of one of the brightest stars observed in the region Gulf) are expected in Doha in October 2022, just before the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. “A gift offered by the 1.4 billion Chinese“, said the Chinese ambassador in the emirate. A gift “which will surely become a new symbol of friendship between China and Qatar“.
A gift that has nothing to do with football… even if large Chinese companies have participated in the construction of the stadiums, even if it is China that manufactures most of the balls, jerseys, gates -keys and gadgets sold for the World Cup. These two big hairy beasts with exceptional sympathy capital reward above all economic and diplomatic links in full expansion. China has recently become Qatar’s largest trading partner. Who, for his part, is seeking to multiply alliances to regain the advantage over his neighbors in the Gulf.
The “panda diplomacy”, a very old tradition, dates back to the Tang dynasty in the 7th century. Note that if these critters – as cute as they are clumsy – have become the symbol of China, it is because it has a monopoly on them. Only in China, in the central forests of the country, are pandas born in the wild. You can’t find it anywhere else.
THREAD/ As Huan Huan gave birth to two babies at Beauval Zoo, it is interesting to briefly return to the notion often mentioned in the press of “panda diplomacy” as a diplomatic tool of Beijing. 1/n pic.twitter.com/5V74p7wJje
— Antoine Bondaz (@AntoineBondaz) August 2, 2021
In our contemporary world, it was in 1941 that for the first time Beijing decided to use pandas to improve its image abroad: Chiang Kai-shek’s wife sent two pandas to New York to thank the Americans for their aid in the war against Japan.
In the 1950s, it was rather to friendly countries of the communist bloc that Beijing offered its friendly bamboo eaters – Russia, North Korea… In the 1970s, pandas sealed the historic rapprochement with the United States, they cross the Atlantic just after President Nixon’s visit to China. And then over the years and the trade agreements established by the new Chinese market economy, everyone is entitled to it: Japan, Canada, France, Germany, etc.
“Panda Diplomacy”; Angela Merkel and Xi Jinping welcome giant pandas Meng Meng and Jiao Qing to Berlin Zoo #AFP pic.twitter.com/mTIni9eFDa
– Agence France-Presse (@afpfr) July 6, 2017
Today pandas are no longer given but rented, against substantial sums which encourage Beijing to multiply loans. Of course, they remain the emblem of Chinese-style soft power, but their role has changed a little: they are increasingly used to guarantee strategic supply contracts. In France, a couple of pandas were lent to the Beauval zoo in 2012, the year when Areva signed a very large uranium supply contract. But maybe that’s just a coincidence.
This is also the case with Qatar. The challenge can be summed up in three letters: LNG, liquefied natural gas, of which Qatar is one of the main producers. The emirate also wants to increase its production by more than 60% in the next five years. He will become an essential partner. At a time when everyone is looking for alternatives to Russian gas, there is a deposit there that whets appetites. Lhe Qatar also announced a few days ago the signing of a 1.5 billion euro contract with the French TotalEnergies to develop the largest natural gas field in the world.
China, which is one of the biggest consumers of LNG in the world, is already a customer of Qatar. She wants to stay. Its major oil companies are in talks for substantial investments and long-term contracts (Beijing also needs gas to replace coal). The pandas arrive at the right time. But maybe that too is just a coincidencethereend up.