[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 897 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 897

  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that any giant 
panda born in the United States should belong to the United States and 
    the United States should seek the coordination of its allies to 
         establish collaborative giant panda breeding programs.


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                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 1, 2022

Ms. Mace submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Foreign Affairs

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                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that any giant 
panda born in the United States should belong to the United States and 
    the United States should seek the coordination of its allies to 
         establish collaborative giant panda breeding programs.

Whereas the Chinese state has systematically leveraged giant pandas for 
        diplomatic purposes, including gaining favor in countries of economic 
        interest and value;
Whereas China now loans giant pandas to foreign countries in exchange for a fee 
        of $500,000 per panda, and the foreign country must agree to return such 
        panda to China;
Whereas, as of May 2019, China had loaned giant pandas to approximately 22 zoos 
        located in 18 different countries;
Whereas under the giant panda loan agreements between the United States and 
        China, the United States--

    (1) bears the cost of caring for each giant panda in its possession, 
including costs relating to breeding; and

    (2) may not negotiate the ownership of giant pandas born as the result 
of such breeding;

Whereas, on January 19, 2021, the Department of State determined China, under 
        the direction and control of the Chinese Communist Party, committed 
        crimes against humanity and genocide against the predominately Muslim 
        Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang;
Whereas, in December 2021, the United States announced that they will not send 
        any official representation to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics due to 
        such human rights violations;
Whereas the People's Liberation Army has and continues to threaten and 
        intimidate Taiwan, one of the closest security partners and allies of 
        the United States, with comprehensive live-fire exercises conducted by 
        naval and air patrols in the East China Sea and Taiwan Strait;
Whereas during the height of the 2019 prodemocracy protests in Hong Kong, 
        President Xi Jinping of the People's Republic of China stated, ``[T]hose 
        who engage in separatist activities in any part of China will be smashed 
        into pieces.'';
Whereas the Communist Party of China has been enriched by the gifting and 
        leasing of giant pandas to the United States and other countries for 
        decades;
Whereas the United States plays an ongoing, vital role in conserving the 
        endangered giant panda species through various breeding programs and is 
        dedicated to repopulating the species; and
Whereas prolonged studies of generations of pandas in United States zoos would 
        lead to better scientific understanding of the species: Now, therefore, 
        be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of Representatives 
that--
            (1) any giant panda born in the United States should belong 
        to the United States; and
            (2) the United States should seek the coordination of its 
        allies to establish collaborative giant panda breeding 
        programs.
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