Scotland could be on the receiving end of more "panda diplomacy" as China steps up hostilities with the UK Government.
A state-run newspaper in the country has urged the Communist superpower to back the SNP's independence campaign in a move it said would send shockwaves through the Westminster Government.
Relations between the UK and China have been icy since Prime Minister David Cameron and his deputy Nick Clegg met the Dalai Lama last year. On the same trip First Minister Alex Salmond failed to meet the exiled Tibetan leader.
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