China News Service: Zoo Atlanta has held the inauguration of the new panda grove, marking the public debut of giant pandas Ping Ping and Fu Shuang. Does China have any comment?
Guo Jiakun: On September 24, during his state visit to the United States, President Xi Jinping announced that two giant pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, would soon find their new home in Zoo Atlanta, which was warmly welcomed by people in the U.S. On September 27 local time, the two pandas arrived in Atlanta. We are happy to see that the duo have recently made their public debut, bringing great joy to the local people and strengthening the bonds of friendship between the Chinese and American peoples.
The giant panda is China’s national treasure and an envoy of friendship. To ensure the pair’s health and safety as well as smooth journey and adaptation to the new environment, thorough preparations have been made in strict accordance with the requirements and technical standards for international giant panda conservation cooperation. We believe this new panda cooperation will benefit the protection of giant pandas and other endangered species, global biodiversity conservation, and people-to-people friendship between China and the U.S.
AFP: This is a question regarding the allegations that tech executive Alice Huang was working for Chinese intelligence as she had a close relationship with NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang. So my question is, does the Chinese leader plan to address these spying allegations with Donald Trump?
Guo Jiakun: On the meeting between Chinese and U.S. presidents, the two sides are in communication regarding interactions between the two heads of state within the year.
On the so-called “Chinese spy,” we’ve stated China’s position on multiple occasions.
Bloomberg: Could the foreign ministry confirm whether Alice Huang is a Chinese citizen and what her current whereabouts are?
Guo Jiakun: We responded to that yesterday. The “Chinese spy” allegation is purely unsubstantiated and directed at smearing China.
AFP: According to reports by the Wall Street Journal, the Chinese leader would not be willing to participate in a trilateral with Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of APEC if the talks allow for open discussion of issues including nuclear arms control, as opposed to determining the outcomes ahead of time. Would China like to comment and what are China’s hopes for the trilateral meeting?
Guo Jiakun: China is in communication with relevant parties regarding a meeting between the three heads of state. As to your specific question, I have no information to offer at the moment.
