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China-France/Giant Panda/Cooperation
Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - Dec 5, 2025 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Sign of Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding
2. Various of giant panda at base
3. Various of French first lady Brigitte Macron visiting base
4. Plaque showing photo taken at naming ceremony for Yuan Meng, first giant panda born in France
5. Photos showing China-France cooperation on panda conservation
FILE: Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - 2023 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
6. Various of staff feeding, transporting panda Yuan Meng; panda entering enclosure at base
Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - Dec 5, 2025 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
7. Panda chewing leafs
8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese, dubbed in English) Cai Kailai, researcher, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding (partially overlaid with shots 9-10):
"Since giant pandas were sent to France, we've had regular annual cooperation on breeding and scientific research. When conditions permit, we usually send researchers there. Wild release of giant pandas is a key research project of our base. France has donated GPS collars to us, and their technical support helps a lot. Europe is advanced in animal welfare and management globally, so we often cooperate in these areas. We also maintain frequent exchanges on scientific research, animal care, veterinary work, venue construction, and panda repatriation."
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
9. Various of Cai working in lab
10. Sign on door reading "Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife" in Chinese, English
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
11. Brigitte Macron visiting base
12. SOUNDBITE (French) Rodolphe Delord, director of Beauval Zoo (partially overlaid with shot 13-14):
"We have a wide range of cooperation programs. Through these initiatives, we deepen our understanding of pandas and panda breeding daily, while also advancing veterinary techniques. Our veterinarians, researchers and biologists continue to collaborate closely with the Chengdu panda base. Believe it or not, it has been 19 years since I first visited this facility. Yesterday, we signed a new 10-year partnership agreement between ZooParc de Beauval and the Chengdu Panda Base, between France and China."
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
13. Brigitte Macron watching video, smiling
14. Brigitte Macron visiting panda enclosure
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
15. Panda at base
16. Aerial shot of base
French first lady Brigitte Macron paid a special visit to an old friend in southwest China's Chengdu on Friday, as she stopped off to see an eight-year-old male panda which was born in France but later returned to China.
The happy encounter came as French President Emmanuel Macron's three-day state visit to China reached a heartwarming conclusion, with Brigitte Macron heading to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Sichuan Province to be reunited Yuan Meng (meaning "accomplishment of a dream"), the panda she helped name following its birth at France's ZooParc de Beauval (Beauval Zoo).
Yuan Meng's parents, female Huan Huan and male Yuan Zai, were sent from Chengdu to the Beauval Zoo in France's Saint Aignan in 2012 as part of a panda conservation and cooperation program.
In 2017, the panda pair's son Yuan Meng made history as the first panda ever born in France, with the French first lady later becoming the cub's godmother.
Under cooperation agreements, panda cubs born overseas are returned to China before the age of four to avoid inbreeding. However, Yuan Meng left France just days before his sixth birthday two years ago, delayed by crowds of reluctant fans. Coincidentally, his parents concluded their 13-year stay in France and returned home to Chengdu late last month.
The journey of the panda family highlights the enduring friendship between China and France and underscores the close cooperation between the two countries in the conservation of the beloved species.
"Since giant pandas were sent to France, we've had regular annual cooperation on breeding and scientific research. When conditions permit, we usually send researchers there. Wild release of giant pandas is a key research project of our base. France has donated GPS collars to us, and their technical support helps a lot. Europe is advanced in animal welfare and management globally, so we often cooperate in these areas. We also maintain frequent exchanges on scientific research, animal care, veterinary work, venue construction, and panda repatriation," said Cai Kailai, a researcher at the Chengdu base.
During Macron's visit to China, the two sides inked an agreement to extend their panda conservation partnership for another 10 years, with the China Wildlife Conservation Association announcing that a new panda pair is set to arrive at the Beauval Zoo in 2027.
Yuan Meng's parents also gave birth to female twins in 2021, who are set to stay for the time being at the popular Beauval Zoo, which last year welcomed nearly 2 million visitors.
The zoo's director Rodolphe Delord accompanied the French first lady on her visit to the Chengdu base on Friday, and said he is looking forward to working closely with the Chinese side on future panda cooperation.
"We have a wide range of cooperation programs. Through these initiatives, we deepen our understanding of pandas and panda breeding daily, while also advancing veterinary techniques. Our veterinarians, researchers and biologists continue to collaborate closely with the Chengdu panda base. Believe it or not, it has been 19 years since I first visited this facility. Yesterday, we signed a new 10-year partnership agreement between ZooParc de Beauval and the Chengdu Panda Base, between France and China," he said.
China-France/Giant Panda/Cooperation
Dateline : Dec 5, 2025/File
Location : China
Duration : 2'20
Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - Dec 5, 2025 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Sign of Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding
2. Various of giant panda at base
3. Various of French first lady Brigitte Macron visiting base
4. Plaque showing photo taken at naming ceremony for Yuan Meng, first giant panda born in France
5. Photos showing China-France cooperation on panda conservation
FILE: Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - 2023 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
6. Various of staff feeding, transporting panda Yuan Meng; panda entering enclosure at base
Chengdu City, Sichuan Province, southwest China - Dec 5, 2025 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland)
7. Panda chewing leafs
8. SOUNDBITE (Chinese, dubbed in English) Cai Kailai, researcher, Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding (partially overlaid with shots 9-10):
"Since giant pandas were sent to France, we've had regular annual cooperation on breeding and scientific research. When conditions permit, we usually send researchers there. Wild release of giant pandas is a key research project of our base. France has donated GPS collars to us, and their technical support helps a lot. Europe is advanced in animal welfare and management globally, so we often cooperate in these areas. We also maintain frequent exchanges on scientific research, animal care, veterinary work, venue construction, and panda repatriation."
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
9. Various of Cai working in lab
10. Sign on door reading "Sichuan Key Laboratory of Conservation Biology for Endangered Wildlife" in Chinese, English
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
11. Brigitte Macron visiting base
12. SOUNDBITE (French) Rodolphe Delord, director of Beauval Zoo (partially overlaid with shot 13-14):
"We have a wide range of cooperation programs. Through these initiatives, we deepen our understanding of pandas and panda breeding daily, while also advancing veterinary techniques. Our veterinarians, researchers and biologists continue to collaborate closely with the Chengdu panda base. Believe it or not, it has been 19 years since I first visited this facility. Yesterday, we signed a new 10-year partnership agreement between ZooParc de Beauval and the Chengdu Panda Base, between France and China."
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
13. Brigitte Macron watching video, smiling
14. Brigitte Macron visiting panda enclosure
++SHOTS OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++
15. Panda at base
16. Aerial shot of base
French first lady Brigitte Macron paid a special visit to an old friend in southwest China's Chengdu on Friday, as she stopped off to see an eight-year-old male panda which was born in France but later returned to China.
The happy encounter came as French President Emmanuel Macron's three-day state visit to China reached a heartwarming conclusion, with Brigitte Macron heading to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Sichuan Province to be reunited Yuan Meng (meaning "accomplishment of a dream"), the panda she helped name following its birth at France's ZooParc de Beauval (Beauval Zoo).
Yuan Meng's parents, female Huan Huan and male Yuan Zai, were sent from Chengdu to the Beauval Zoo in France's Saint Aignan in 2012 as part of a panda conservation and cooperation program.
In 2017, the panda pair's son Yuan Meng made history as the first panda ever born in France, with the French first lady later becoming the cub's godmother.
Under cooperation agreements, panda cubs born overseas are returned to China before the age of four to avoid inbreeding. However, Yuan Meng left France just days before his sixth birthday two years ago, delayed by crowds of reluctant fans. Coincidentally, his parents concluded their 13-year stay in France and returned home to Chengdu late last month.
The journey of the panda family highlights the enduring friendship between China and France and underscores the close cooperation between the two countries in the conservation of the beloved species.
"Since giant pandas were sent to France, we've had regular annual cooperation on breeding and scientific research. When conditions permit, we usually send researchers there. Wild release of giant pandas is a key research project of our base. France has donated GPS collars to us, and their technical support helps a lot. Europe is advanced in animal welfare and management globally, so we often cooperate in these areas. We also maintain frequent exchanges on scientific research, animal care, veterinary work, venue construction, and panda repatriation," said Cai Kailai, a researcher at the Chengdu base.
During Macron's visit to China, the two sides inked an agreement to extend their panda conservation partnership for another 10 years, with the China Wildlife Conservation Association announcing that a new panda pair is set to arrive at the Beauval Zoo in 2027.
Yuan Meng's parents also gave birth to female twins in 2021, who are set to stay for the time being at the popular Beauval Zoo, which last year welcomed nearly 2 million visitors.
The zoo's director Rodolphe Delord accompanied the French first lady on her visit to the Chengdu base on Friday, and said he is looking forward to working closely with the Chinese side on future panda cooperation.
"We have a wide range of cooperation programs. Through these initiatives, we deepen our understanding of pandas and panda breeding daily, while also advancing veterinary techniques. Our veterinarians, researchers and biologists continue to collaborate closely with the Chengdu panda base. Believe it or not, it has been 19 years since I first visited this facility. Yesterday, we signed a new 10-year partnership agreement between ZooParc de Beauval and the Chengdu Panda Base, between France and China," he said.
ID : 8456179
Published : 2025-12-05 21:03
Last Modified : 2025-12-05 23:19:17
Source : China Global Television Network (CGTN)
Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland
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