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First ladies Michelle Obama and China's Peng Liyuan name a panda

This article is more than 12 months old

There is some serious Panda diplomacy at work during Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife's visit to the United States.

The talks between President Barack Obama and Xi on cyber security may have crawled to an understanding after promising to bring the internet arms race to a standstill.

While that journey to an agreement was fraught with some tension, the leaders' other halves had a much easier decision to make.

The two first ladies Michelle Obama and Peng Liyuan unveiled the name of America's new panda cub that was born on Aug 22.

On Friday, they headed to the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, D.C., where they revealed the name Bei Bei.

 

 

Pronounced "Bay Bay", the name translates to "precious treasure".

The first ladies chose the name from recommendations made by the National Zoo and China's Wolong Nature Reserve.

Peng said that Bei Bei's birth signified another "success in a conservation cooperation between China and the United States on giant pandas."

Ms Peng also seems to be a fan of the city's Metro fare cards that feature a photo of a Panda munching on bamboo.

"I truly hope to own some of these fare cards as a souvenir," she added.

Sources: The Guardian, CNN, CBS News

Barack ObamapandaBei BeiChinaXi JinpingPeng Liyuanunited states