US President Joe Biden has promised to save the world’s only scaly mammals, pangolins, from extinction. To do this, he ordered that China stop importing these animals and using them for medical purposes, including under the threat of sanctions. This is stated in the notification to Congress, RIA Novosti reports.
The American leader noted that pangolins, whose scales are valued in traditional medicine “without scientific basis,” are captured and smuggled more often than rhinoceroses, elephants and tigers “combined.” “The United States will take the actions necessary to stop illegal trade to save pangolins from extinction,” he said.
Biden ordered his administration to negotiate with China and achieve the complete closure of the domestic market for pangolins and fragments of their bodies, as well as their complete removal from the national list of drugs approved for use. To fulfill these requirements, the president set a deadline of December 31, 2023. Otherwise, the head of the White House promised to introduce trade restrictions.
Earlier it was reported that the United States and China reached an agreement in principle for a meeting between the leaders of the countries Joe Biden and Xi Jinping. At the moment, the parties are agreeing on the details, Deputy Press Secretary of the US President Emily Simons said at a briefing.
