In brief
Thousands gathered at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo to bid farewell to twin giant pandas Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, who are returning to China. This emotional event occurs amidst escalating tensions between Japan and China, especially related to comments by Japanese leaders concerning Taiwan. The departure signifies the end of an era for Japan, as it will be without pandas for the first time since 1972.
Thousands of people flocked to a zoo in Japan on Sunday to say farewell to the country's last two giant pandas, who are set to return to China on Tuesday. Emotions ran high at the Ueno zoo in Tokyo as people stood in line – some for as long as three-and-a-half hours – to see twin cubs Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei one last time.This comes at a very tense moment in relations between Tokyo and Beijing. Ties have sharply deteriorated after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Tokyo would get involved militarily if China attacked Taiwan. The twins' departure will leave Japan without any pandas for the first time since 1972, the year the two countries normalized diplomatic ties.The People's Republic of China has used giant pandas as a gesture of goodwill towards its international allies and competitors since it was founded in 1949. But China retains ownership of all pandas it loans to foreign countries, including cubs born abroad. In return, host countries pay an annual fee of about $1m (£790,000) per pair of pandas.According to Tokyo's metropolitan government, around 108,000 people vied to get one of 4,400 slots available for one last look at the zoo's beloved pandas. I have been bringing my son here since he was a baby, so I hope it becomes a good memory for him. I'm glad we could come today to remember them, Ai Shirakawa shared.Visitors were seen sobbing as they bade farewell to the bears. Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei were born in 2021 at the Ueno zoo to their mother Shin Shin and father Ri Ri, who were on loan to Japan for breeding research. Recent panda loans have coincided with major trade agreements, linking soft diplomacy to economic interests.Amid these escalating tensions, the prospect of new panda loans to Japan remains uncertain, especially after Takaichi’s comments angered Beijing. Hostile actions and rhetoric have characterized recent interactions, further complicating the relationship between the two nations.
