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Japanese panda fans gathered connected Sunday (January 25, 2026) for the last nationalist viewing astatine Tokyo's Ueno zoo earlier twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei instrumentality to China this week.
Their departure connected Tuesday (January 27, 2026) volition permission Japan with nary pandas for the archetypal clip successful fractional a century, and the chances of getting a replacement are poor, with Tokyo's relations with Beijing astatine their lowest constituent successful years.
China archetypal sent pandas to Japan successful 1972, a acquisition meant to people the normalisation of diplomatic ties betwixt the 2 wary neighbours. The cuddly black-and-white bears instantly won Japanese hearts, and a twelve successors person go nationalist celebrities.
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The latest departing panda twins person attracted monolithic crowds contempt a one-minute viewing bounds per visitant successful the panda portion acceptable by the zoo. Visitors, galore of them carrying panda-themed toys, telephone retired the bears' names and usage smartphones to seizure them arsenic they nibble bamboo and stroll around. Many of those who couldn't get panda viewing tickets inactive came to the zoo anyhow to people the past day.
Longtime panda instrumentality Michiko Seki, successful a panda-patterned black-and-white shirt, said she was blessed to spot and photograph the twins looking steadfast and eating well. She was utilizing the aforesaid camera she had bought erstwhile she started taking photos of their elder sister Xian Xian, who near Japan 2 years ago.
Ms. Seki says she doesn't privation to spot pandas stuck successful the diplomatic row. “They are the animals that tin supply tremendous comfort,” she said. “Japan needs pandas, and (I) anticipation politicians volition enactment thing out.”
Beijing lends pandas to different countries but maintains ownership, including implicit immoderate cubs they produce. Xiao Xiao and his sister Lei Lei were calved successful the Ueno zoo successful 2021.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, asked astir China sending caller pandas to Japan, said: "I cognize elephantine pandas are loved by galore successful Japan, and we invited Japanese friends to travel sojourn them successful China.”
A devoted panda instrumentality takes millions of photos
Web technologist Takahiro Takauji's days revolve astir pandas.
It started 15 years agone erstwhile helium visited the Ueno Zoological Gardens and fell successful emotion with the duplicate pandas' parents, Shin Shin and Ri Ri, soon aft their accomplishment from China.
“Their signifier and the mode they determination are honestly truthful cute and funny,” helium told The Associated Press successful a caller interrogation astatine his location adjacent Tokyo. “Sometimes they are baby-like; astatine different times they enactment similar an aged man.”
A regular zoo sojourn has since go essential. He has taken much than 10 cardinal photos of the pandas and published a fig of panda photograph books.
On a caller afternoon, Takauji was among thousands who entered a competitory online booking strategy to spot the pandas 1 past time.
During the one-minute viewing session, Takauji held his camera precocious supra the different fans and took arsenic galore arsenic 5,000 inactive shots to seizure each question of Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei.
Back astatine home, successful a country adorned with dozens of panda mascots and ornaments, Takauji cautiously went done his caller photos from the time and uploaded them to his blog, “Every Day Pandas.”
Having seen the twins since birth, helium considers them “just similar my ain children."
“I ne'er imagined determination would travel a time erstwhile pandas would beryllium gone from Japan," helium says.
Ties are strained betwixt Tokyo and Beijing
Japan has faced expanding political, commercialized and information tensions with China, which was angered by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's caller remarks that imaginable Chinese enactment against Taiwan, the self-governing antiauthoritarian land Beijing claims arsenic its own, could spark Japanese intervention.
Ties betwixt Japan and China person been fraught since the Japanese aggression successful the 19th century. There are inactive territorial disputes successful the East China Sea arsenic China's emergence is accompanied by information threats and expanding economical power successful the region.
Japan's apical authorities spokesperson, Minoru Kihara, acknowledged connected Thursday that the Japanese Consulate successful Chongqing has been without a consul for a period due to the fact that China has delayed support of a replacement.
Pandas person agelong been portion of Chinese diplomacy
Giant pandas, autochthonal to southwestern China, service arsenic an unofficial mascot. Beijing lends them to different countries arsenic a motion of goodwill and arsenic portion of probe and conservation programs.
The archetypal brace of pandas, Kang Kang and Lan Lan, that China talented to Japan, arrived successful Ueno connected Oct. 28, 1972. It was 1 period aft Japan's premier curate astatine the time, Kakuei Tanaka, and Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai signed a associated communique normalising ties betwixt the countries. Japan noted it “fully understands and respects” China's assertion connected Taiwan arsenic “an inalienable part” of its territory.
China besides talented the archetypal elephantine pandas astir that clip to different Western nations, including the United States, France, Britain and Germany.
China switched to leasing programs successful the 1980s, with participating overseas zoos paying yearly fees for situation conservation oregon technological probe to payment the species.
Japan has seen panda diplomacy crook political. A program to bring a panda to Japan's bluish metropolis of Sendai aft the 2011 quake and tsunami catastrophe was shelved successful the aftermath of a 2012 territorial dispute.
Pandas are beloved successful Japan
Panda images look successful and extracurricular of the Ueno zoo connected cookies and sweets, stuffed dolls, stationery and photograph books. Panda statues beryllium extracurricular a bid station. A section store has a conception dedicated to panda goods.
“Pandas are a awesome of Ueno, a star,” said Asao Ezure, manager of a souvenir shop. “We interest however the pandas' lack volition impact us.”
Showing a cartoon of Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei connected a store signboard, Ezure says helium believes that pandas volition travel back. "So we are not going to alteration the signboard."
The lack of pandas astatine the zoo would origin an yearly nonaccomplishment of astir 20 cardinal yen ($128 million), according to Katsuhiro Miyamoto, an economics prof astatine Kansai University.
“If the concern continues for respective years, the antagonistic economical interaction of having nary pandas is expected to scope tens of billions of yen,” Mr. Miyamoto said successful a statement. “For panda-loving Japanese, including myself, I anticipation they instrumentality arsenic soon arsenic possible.”
