More accustomed these days to fielding critical questions about the US handling of crises like Iraq and the war in Lebanon, State Department officials were visibly pleased to reveal the agreement with Pakistan that will see the cub temporarily transferred to New York's Bronx Zoo.

The cub, nicknamed Leo by the Pakistanis, was found in the mountains of northern Pakistan in July 2005 by a goat herder whose family cared for the animal for several months until handing it over to Pakistani authorities.

The US embassy in Islamabad learned of the cub's plight in November during a major earthquake relief effort in the region and set out to find the rapidly growing animal a new home, US Ambassador Ryan Crocker said.

With the help of the Wildlife Conservation Society and State Department officials led by Assistant Secretary of State Claudia McMurray, the cub's transfer to the Bronx Zoo was arranged, officials said.

The cub is now 13 months old and weighs about 28 kilos (60 pounds).

Washington praised Pakistan, already a key ally in its "war on terror", for its cooperation in moving the cub to the US zoo, saying the venture was "a symbol of the government of Pakistans commitment to conservation".

Snow leopards live in some of the most remote high altitude regions of Central Asia and current estimates suggest there are only between 3,500 and 7,000 snow leopards left in the wild, 200-400 of them in Pakistan.

They are listed as endangered on the World Conservation Union Red List of Threatened Species.

The Bronx Zoo already has 12 snow leopards in a specially designed habitat and is involved in a Species Survival Plan breeding program for the animals.

Under Tuesday's agreement, the Wildlife Conservation Society will also help Pakistan develop a snow leopard rehabilitation center.

Crocker, speaking to a ceremony in Islamabad marking the agreement, called the deal a "win-win" operation.

"The government of Pakistan will receive training and technical assistance, the Bronx Zoo will have the opportunity to study this rare animal, and the snow leopard gets to go on an expenses-paid journey to the United States, where his only responsibilities will be eating, growing and breeding snow leopard cubs," he said.

"Maybe the snow leopard is the biggest winner of all."

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