 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Chinese pandas to arrive in Taiwan by Christmas: official
Taipei (AFP) Dec 12, 2008 A pair of giant pandas offered by China were expected to arrive in Taiwan by Christmas in yet another sign of improving ties, an official said Friday. "The Taipei city government plans to send a small delegation to Sichuan, China to bring the pandas here sometime between December 20-25," said spokesman Yang Hsiao-tung. Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin expects the pandas to attract more than six million visitors to the city's zoo annually in a major boost to the capital's tourism industry. Local media said officials were keen to bring the pandas to the island by Christmas in time for them to debut at the Lunar New Year holidays -- the peak tourism season -- after a 30-day quarantine. The city government has invested some 320 million Taiwan dollars (around 10 million US) to build an enclosure for the pandas called Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan, which comes from the Chinese word "tuanyuan", or "reunion." Ties with Beijing have improved dramatically since China-friendly President Ma Ying-jeou took office earlier this year. The pro-independence Chen Shui-bian had banned the import of Chinese pandas during his tenure, accusing Beijing of looking to curry favour with the Taiwanese people through so-called "panda diplomacy". Beijing made the panda offer during a historic trip to China in 2005 by Taiwan's then opposition leader, former Kuomintang chairman Lien Chan. Taiwan and China split in 1949 at the end of a civil war. Beijing still considers the self-ruled island to be part of its territory awaiting reunification, by force if necessary. China, which has used panda diplomacy worldwide since the Cold War, has reportedly made at least three other attempts to give pandas to Taiwan -- none through official channels. Beijing's pandas usually come with enormous rental fees, but the Chinese have said there would be no charges for Taiwan. Share This Article With Planet Earth
Related Links Taiwan News at SinoDaily.com
Taiwanese official reassures Japan over warmer China ties
Tokyo (AFP) Dec 9, 2008Japan has nothing to fear from Taiwan's warmer ties with Beijing, the visiting head of the ruling Kuomintang party said Tuesday. |
|
|
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2007 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement |
del.icio.us
Digg
Reddit
YahooMyWeb
Google
Facebook