The United States supports the tiger trade ban in China. |
The Bush administration said it will oppose ongoing efforts to lift China’s domestic tiger trade ban.
On May 3, an administration official told Congress that it will actively work during next month’s Convention on the International Trade of Endangered Species (CITES) meeting to keep China’s 14-year-old tiger trade ban in place.
Todd Willens, head of the U.S. CITES delegation, testified in front of the House Subcommittee on Natural Resources that the United States would work to persuade China not to lift the tiger trade ban.
The Chinese government is expected to make a case for resuming trade to the international community at the next CITES meeting.
“It is critical that the United States and other important partners of China speak up for tigers at the CITES conference in June,” said Judy Mills of the International Tiger Coalition, an alliance of 30 organizations with the common aim of stopping trade in tiger parts and products from all sources.
Members include conservationists, animal welfare groups, traditional Chinese medicine organizations and zoos.
“It is even more important that countries with wild tigers, such as India, let China know how important its trade ban is for survival of their tigers,” Mills said.