After joining the Chinese leader Xi Jinping for dinner last year, Mayor London Breed of San Francisco accompanied him to the airport to bid him farewell. There, on the tarmac, she made her request: pandas.

去年，旧金山市长伦敦·布里德在与中国领导人习近平共进晚餐后，陪同他前往机场送行。在停机坪上，她提出了自己的要求：大熊猫。

Her city’s zoo was faltering. Tourism was suffering and she faced a tough re-election campaign. A pair of pandas from China would be a political and public relations win.

当时，旧金山的动物园正陷入困境。旅游业遭受重创，她面临着艰难的连任竞选。一对来自中国的大熊猫将是政治和公关的胜利。

What ensued were months of informal negotiations, with Ms. Breed — a politician with no foreign affairs or security experience — becoming a diplomat of sorts. She went to China, where she met the vice president and a deputy foreign minister, her calendars and emails show. She traveled with the editor of Sing Tao U.S., a pro-Beijing newspaper that registers as a foreign agent in the United States, according to other records and photographs from the trip.

接下来是几个月的非正式谈判，布里德在某种意义上成为了一名外交官，尽管作为政客，她并没有外交或者安全事务方面的经验。她的日程安排和电子邮件都显示，她后来去了中国，并见到了国家副主席和外交部副部长。这次访华行程的其他记录和照片显示，随行的还有美国《星岛日报》的主编，这是一份立场亲北京的报纸，在美国注册为外国代理人。

All of this was organized by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, a group that American intelligence officials have concluded seeks to “malignly influence” local leaders. Unlike traveling Washington politicians, Ms. Breed received no C.I.A. briefing about what counterintelligence threats she might face in China and how officials there might try to manipulate her.

中国人民对外友好协会安排了这次行程，美国情报官员认为，这个机构试图“恶意影响”美国地方领导人。不同于华盛顿的政治人物出访，布里德没有听取中央情报局的介绍，了解她在访华期间可能面临的反情报威胁，以及那里的官员可能会如何试图操纵她。

旧金山市长伦敦·布里德（左）和中国野生动物保护协会秘书长武明录4月在北京举行的向美国城市租借大熊猫的签字仪式上。

If Ms. Breed wanted pandas, China had an interest in the meeting, too — as a way to cultivate a relationship with the mayor of one of America’s most technologically important cities. There is no evidence of any quid pro quo or wrongdoing, but intelligence officials say that China is increasingly looking to wield influence in local governments as its sway in Washington diminishes.

布里德想要的是大熊猫，但中国在这次会面中也是有所图的——可以借此机会与美国科技重镇之一的市长培养关系。虽然没有证据表明存在任何交换条件或不当行为，但情报官员表示，随着中国在华盛顿的影响力减弱，它越来越希望在地方政府中发挥影响力。

One lever it has, documents and interviews show, is pandas. Chinese officials have sought to use pandas to cultivate relationships, shape policy on Taiwan and soften China’s image abroad, a major goal of Mr. Xi. Panda exchanges provide Chinese leaders with rare, high-profile opportunities to rebrand their country.

文件和采访显示，大熊猫就是中方可以倚仗的一项工具。中国官员试图利用熊猫来培养关系，塑造对台湾的政策，并改善中国在国外的形象，这是习近平的一个重要目标。大熊猫交流为中国领导人提供了难得且高调的机会，来重塑他们国家的形象。

This has long been the case. During panda negotiations with Omaha and with Oakland in the mid-2000s, Chinese diplomats tried to scuttle a Nebraskan trade deal with Taiwan and to persuade a California congresswoman to stop criticizing Beijing, negotiators for the American side said. When those efforts failed, China denied pandas to both cities, they said.

这种情况由来已久。美方谈判代表表示，在2000年代中期与奥马哈和奥克兰进行大熊猫谈判时，中国外交官曾试图破坏内布拉斯加州与台湾的贸易协议，并试图说服一位加州国会议员停止批评北京。在这些努力失败后，中国拒绝向这两个城市提供熊猫。

But intelligence officials say that China’s outreach is on the rise locally, where officials often do not have the training or intelligence briefings needed to deflect it.

但情报官员表示，中国在美国地方层面的影响力正在上升，地方官员往往没有接受必要的培训或情报简报，来抵御这种影响。

In September, federal prosecutors charged a former aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul of New York with taking payoffs for securing Chinese influence in Albany. Also this year, a former aide to the New York City mayor, Eric Adams, came under scrutiny after collaborating with groups linked to China’s government.

今年9月，联邦检察官指控纽约州州长凯茜·霍格尔的一名前助手收受贿赂，以换取中国在奥尔巴尼的影响力。同样是在今年，纽约市市长埃里克·亚当斯的一名前助手因与中国政府关联团体合作而引起关注。

Local officials in the United States and Europe are also struggling to make sense of a network of unofficial Chinese police outposts that have popped up unexpectedly.

美国和欧洲的地方官员还在极力搞清楚，那些突然冒出来的非正式中国海外警务站究竟是怎么回事。

As relations between Beijing and Washington have cooled and high-level delegations have slowed, diplomacy at the local level has taken on increased significance.

随着北京与华盛顿之间的关系降温，高层交流减缓，地方层面的外交变得越来越重要。

“Every mayor wants to have the publicity of getting pandas,” said David Towne, former panda negotiator for American zoos. “Pandas become the bait,” he added.

美国动物园的前熊猫谈判代表戴维·汤说：“每个市长都希望借助熊猫的宣传效应。”他还说，“熊猫成了诱饵。”

Pandas are the face of wildlife conservation. Zoos pay about $1 million a year to rent them from China and breed them in captivity, in hopes that pandas will someday be released into the wild. China is supposed to use the money to protect the wild species.

熊猫是保护野生动物的代言人。动物园每年支付约100万美元从中国那里租来熊猫，并在人工饲养环境下进行繁殖，希望有朝一日熊猫能被放归野外。中国应该用这笔钱来保护野生物种。

But a New York Times investigation this year revealed that after three decades, China has actually captured more pandas than it has released. And aggressive artificial breeding has injured and even killed pandas. China has steered millions of dollars toward building infrastructure such as apartments and roads as American zoo administrators and regulators looked the other way.

然而，《纽约时报》今年的一项调查报道显示，三十年来，中国捕获的熊猫数量实际上多余放归自然的数量。而激进的人工繁殖方式不仅令熊猫受伤，甚至导致了死亡的发生。中国还将数百万美元用于修建公寓和道路等基础设施，而美国动物园的管理者和监管机构对此视而不见。

Zoos have an incentive to keep the program running. Pandas bring crowds and merchandise sales. China, too, has a stake in the exchanges.

美国的动物园有维持这一项目继续运行的动机。大熊猫能够吸引大量游客和周边商品的销售。中国也能从这些交流中获益。

“Pandas are an interesting piece of the propaganda and influence-seeking puzzle because they’re seemingly innocuous and fuzzy and huggable,” said Orville Schell, who directs the Center on U.S.-China Relations at the Asia Society in New York.

位于纽约州的亚洲协会美中关系中心主任夏伟(Orville Schell)表示，“在宣传和寻求影响力的谜题中，熊猫是一个有趣的部分，因为它们看似无害、毛茸茸的，让人想抱。”

As Lee Simmons, former director of the Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium in Omaha, put it: “Almost every Chinese ambassador was a panda salesman.”

正如奥马哈的亨利多利动物园和水族馆前任馆长李·西蒙斯所说：“几乎每位中国驻美大使都是熊猫的推销员。”

The Chinese Embassy in Washington did not comment on whether Beijing had used pandas to push its political interests. It said that pandas had “promoted people-to-people exchanges between China and the U.S. and enhanced the friendship between the two peoples.” It criticized anyone who “maliciously associated and unreasonably slandered China-U.S. cooperation on giant panda conservation without factual evidence.”

中国驻华盛顿的大使馆没有就北京是否利用大熊猫来推动其政治利益发表评论。该馆称大熊猫“促进了中美两国人民之间的交流，促进了两国人民的友谊”。它批评那些“在没有事实证据的情况下，恶意联系和无理诽谤中美在大熊猫保护方面合作”的人。

Ms. Breed’s office declined to say whether the mayor had concerns about her trip’s organizers or about the newspaper that is registered as a foreign agent.

布里德的办公室拒绝透露，市长是否对她访华行程的组织单位以及那份注册为外国代理人的报纸感到担忧。

“This was a trip designed to boost tourism, which ultimately would benefit San Francisco’s economy,” her office said in a statement.

“这次出访旨在促进旅游，最终将有利于旧金山的经济，”她的办公室在一份声明中表示。

布里德在4月访华后在旧金山国际机场。北京利用所谓的熊猫外交来赢得世界的好感。

Ms. Breed announced this spring that two pandas will arrive in San Francisco next year.

布里德今年春天宣布，两只大熊猫将于明年来到旧金山。

Panda Influence

熊猫的影响力

The Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries portrays itself as nongovernmental. But it is an arm of the Communist Party, charged with overseeing outreach to foreign local governments.

中国人民对外友好协会自称非政府组织。但它是共产党的一个分支机构，负责监督与外国地方政府的联络工作。

In 2022, the American director of national intelligence warned statehouses and city halls that China had “stepped up its efforts to cultivate U.S. state and local leaders in a strategy some have described as ‘using the local to surround the central.’” Intelligence officials cited the friendship group as part of that effort.

2022年，美国国家情报总监警告州和市政府机构，中国“加强了与美国各州和地方领导人结交的行动，一些人称之为‘地方包围中央’的战略”。情报官员表示，该友好机构是这一努力的一部分。

Mr. Xi has overseen an effort to rebrand his country through overseas propaganda, or what he calls “telling China’s story well.” Under his watch, China has produced a spate of pro-Beijing documentaries and media channels centered on pandas.

习近平主导了一项通过海外宣传重塑国家形象的努力，用他的话说就是“讲好中国故事”。在他的领导下，中国制作了一系列支持北京的纪录片，并创办了以大熊猫为中心的媒体频道。

In Edinburgh, which until recently was home to pandas, the Chinese government-backed Confucius Institute worked with school officials in the Scottish capital to teach a unit called “Beyond the Panda.” The program included maps showing Taiwan as part of China.

直到不久前，爱丁堡的动物园里还有大熊猫。中国政府支持的孔子学院与苏格兰首府的学校官员合作，开设了一个名为“熊猫之外”的单元。这个项目包括了显示台湾为中国一部分的地图。

The Chinese friendship group has also organized panda-related events with American politicians and Chinese propaganda officials. The group did not respond to a request to comment.

友好协会还与美国政界人士和中国宣传官员共同组织了与大熊猫相关的活动。该团体未回应置评请求。

Pandas are “one of the few tools that China has left for winning public excitement in the U.S. and building soft power,” said Kyle Jaros, an expert on U.S.-China ties at the University of Notre Dame.

“熊猫是中国在美国赢得公众关注并建立软实力的少数工具之一，”圣母大学美中关系专家凯尔·贾罗斯表示。

‘Chinafornia’

 “中华福尼亚”

California is home to two Chinese consulates and many people of Chinese descent. The state’s longstanding ties with Beijing, a relationship sometimes called Chinafornia, have yielded positive changes, like cooperation on climate change.

加利福尼亚州有两个中国领事馆，有大量华裔人口。该州与北京长期保持联系，这种有时被称为“中华福尼亚”的关系带来了诸如气候变化合作等积极变化。

But it has also exposed state and local governments to security risks, experts say.

但专家表示，这种关系也使加州和地方政府面临安全风险。

Before congressional delegations to China, officials typically receive C.I.A. briefings that discuss how Beijing might try to exploit visits, said Dennis Wilder, a senior fellow at Georgetown University and former C.I.A. official focused on East Asia. Travelers are also warned about cybersecurity risks.

乔治敦大学高级研究员、前中情局东亚事务官员丹尼斯·怀尔德表示，在国会代表团访问中国之前，官员们通常会听取中情局的简报，讨论北京可能如何利用这些访问。出访者还会得到有关网络安全风险的警告。

But, Mr. Wilder noted, “At the local level, there’s no mechanism for this.”

但怀尔德指出，“在地方层面并没有类似的机制。”

In its statement, Ms. Breed’s office said that she had received a briefing from the State Department. Mr. Wilder said that those are less thorough than C.I.A. intelligence briefings.

布里德办公室在声明中表示，她收到了国务院的简报。怀尔德表示，这些简报不如中情局的情报简报详尽。

Across the San Francisco Bay, in Oakland, politicians spent nearly a decade trying to get pandas for the city’s zoo. Henry Chang, a former deputy mayor, said that he had met with a vice premier and several other senior Chinese officials, adding that they had made what he saw as increasingly unreasonable demands.

在旧金山湾对岸的奥克兰，政界人士花了近十年的时间试图为市动物园争取熊猫。前副市长张明德表示，他曾与一位中国副总理及其他多位中国高级官员会面，还说，他们提出了一些他认为越来越不合理的要求。

位于加利福尼亚州的奥克兰动物园。该市官员花了近十年的时间试图为该公园引进熊猫。

In a 2008 meeting with the Chinese ambassador in Washington, Mr. Chang said, he brought along Representative Barbara Lee. The meeting was ostensibly about pandas, but an aide pressured Ms. Lee to stop criticizing China’s activities in Africa, Mr. Chang said. Ms. Lee had sponsored a resolution the year before calling on China to use its influence in Sudan to end the genocide there.

2008年，张明德在华盛顿与中国大使会面时，带上了国会众议员芭芭拉·李。他说，这次会议名义上是关于熊猫的，但一名中方助手向芭芭拉·李施压，要求她停止批评中国在非洲的活动。此前一年，芭芭拉·李曾发起一项动议，呼吁中国利用在苏丹的影响力结束当地的种族灭绝。

“They were more interested to talk to Barbara Lee about the Africa problem than to talk about pandas, to tell you the truth,” he noted.

“老实说，他们更感兴趣的是与芭芭拉·李讨论非洲问题，而不是谈论熊猫，”他提到。

Ms. Lee’s office did not respond to a request for comment.

芭芭拉·李的办公室未回应置评请求。

The Oakland Zoo built a $1 million panda enclosure and donated $375,000 to a panda breeding center in Chengdu, southwestern China, Mr. Chang said. The pandas never came.

张明德表示，奥克兰动物园耗资100万美元建造了熊猫园，并向中国成都的一个熊猫繁育中心捐赠了37.5万美元，但熊猫并没有来。

Officials in Omaha had a similar experience that same year, said Dr. Simmons, the former zoo director there. Plans for pandas went awry after the state cut a $400 million agricultural trade deal with Taiwan. Dr. Simmons said the Chinese ambassador had asked him to scuttle the deal.

内布拉斯加州奥马哈市的官员也有类似经历，时任动物园园长的西蒙斯表示。同一年，在该州与台湾达成了一项价值4亿美元的农业贸易协议后，熊猫计划落空。西蒙斯说，中国大使曾要求他阻止与台湾的这项协议。

When he did not, China declined to send the bears. “The Chinese were very unhappy with Omaha,” Mr. Towne, the former American panda negotiator, said.

当他没有照办时，中国拒绝把熊猫送来。“中国对奥马哈非常不满，”前美国熊猫谈判代表汤说。

In San Diego, a Chinese diplomat wrote to Mayor Todd Gloria in late 2023, requesting a meeting about pandas and “mutually-beneficial cooperation.” The mayor agreed to meet at the zoo, which an executive there suggested as a discreet location, emails and calendar records show.

在圣迭戈，一名中国外交官于2023年末致信市长托德·格洛里亚，请求就熊猫和“互惠合作”举行会谈。根据电子邮件和日程记录，格洛里亚市长同意在动物园会面，这一地点选择是动物园的一位高层建议的，认为这是一个低调的地点。

When San Diego finally got pandas, in June, Mr. Gloria flew to China for their departure. While there, he said in an interview, he met with a deputy foreign minister in Beijing.

当圣迭戈终于在6月将迎来熊猫时，格洛里亚飞往中国参加熊猫的启程仪式。他在采访中表示，自己在北京与一名外交部副部长举行了会晤。

圣迭戈市市长托德·格洛里亚为迎接即将送往圣迭戈的熊猫而飞往中国。他表示，在北京期间，他会见了中国外交部副部长。

Mr. Gloria said that he understood it was a “fraught time” for U.S.-China relations but that he was cleareyed about the relationship.

格洛里亚表示，他理解这是中美关系的“紧张时期”，但他对双方的关系保持清醒头脑。

“I could control what I am a part of,” Mr. Gloria said. “Through engagement, you gain understanding. You’re able to collaborate.”

“我能够控制我所参与的部分，”格洛里亚说。“通过双方接触，你可以获得理解，并能够合作。”

But Beijing’s talking points crept into the panda welcome ceremony in San Diego — and not just into the Chinese ambassador’s speech. Paul Baribault, a zoo official, talked about the institution’s commitment to a “shared future,” a signature foreign policy concept of Mr. Xi that sees China and other countries competing with the United States for influence.

但北京的宣传要点渗透到了圣迭戈熊猫欢迎仪式中——而且不只是体现在了中国大使的讲话中。动物园官员保罗·巴里博特提到该机构致力于“共同未来”，这是习近平主席的一项核心外交政策概念，认为中国及其他国家将与美国争夺国际影响力。

Gov. Gavin Newsom of California talked about “common humanity,” another buzzword of Mr. Xi’s government.

加州州长加文·纽森提到“人类命运共同体”，这是习近平政府的另一个高频词汇。

San Francisco is still waiting to hear when its pandas will arrive. Ms. Breed lost her re-election bid in November, but her successor, Daniel Lurie, said that he hopes to bring pandas back to the city.

旧金山仍在等待熊猫到来的消息。布里德在11月的连任竞选中失利，但她的继任者丹尼尔·卢里表示，他希望将熊猫带回这座城市。

A city report recently described the San Francisco Zoo as “unsafe for the animals and visitors.” The city is auditing the zoo’s finances, which administrators say could jeopardize hopes for pandas. But there are no indications that China has changed plans.

最近一份城市报告指出，旧金山动物园“对动物和游客都不安全”。该市也正在对动物园的财务状况进行审计，园方表示这可能会危及获得熊猫的希望。但尚无迹象表明中国改变了计划。

In a brief interview with The Times after the San Diego ceremony, Xie Feng, China’s ambassador to the United States, said: “The American people, they are so fond of pandas.”

在圣迭戈欢迎仪式后的一次简短采访中，中国驻美国大使谢锋表示：“美国人民非常喜爱大熊猫。”

2023年8月，中国驻美国大使谢锋在圣迭戈动物园熊猫馆开馆仪式上。