Three golden monkeys from China arrived at Zaventem Airport on Wednesday afternoon as part of a conservation programme for the species.
The three primates, also known as golden snub-nosed monkeys, have been loaned by China to the Pairi Daiza animal park in Hainaut.
The monkeys welcomed to Belgium belong to the Rhinopithecus roxellana qinlingensis subspecies. These individuals, which have red fur, a bluish face and a small upturned nose, live only in the Qinling Mountains in Shaanxi Province (northeast China).
According to a census, only about 4,000 monkeys of this subspecies remain, spread across difficult-to-access and protected areas.
Pairi Daiza. Credit: Belga/Hatim Kaghat
Their arrival in Belgium is the result of a scientific cooperation agreement between Pairi Daiza and the China Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA). The Hainaut park already collaborates with the association in the context of hosting giant pandas.
These primates, which are extremely rare outside China, will be welcomed to the park in the early evening by the Chinese ambassador to Belgium, Fei Shengchao, and representatives of the Walloon Government.
China's practice of lending animals to other countries in exchange for financial compensation is sometimes seen as a tool of "soft power" that allows it to improve its diplomatic relations. The most emblematic animal of this policy is the giant panda.
