Tokyo: Japan’s last two pandas, twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, are leaving Ueno Zoo for China on Tuesday, marking the end of a half-century tradition and leaving the country without pandas for the first time in 50 years. The departure occurs amid worsening diplomatic tensions between Tokyo and Beijing, reducing the likelihood of replacement pandas. China initially sent pandas to Japan in 1972 as a gesture of normalized relations.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the current twins, born at Ueno Zoo in 2021, have attracted large crowds despite one-minute viewing limits. Visitors have been actively taking photos and waving panda-themed items, celebrating the animals’ presence. Dedicated panda enthusiast Takahiro Takauji, who has followed the twins since their birth, expressed his disbelief at the pandas’ departure, having taken millions of photos and even publishing books on them.
Giant pandas have historically been a part of Chinese diplomacy, gifted or leased to countries worldwide as symbols of goodwill and conservation. However, Japan’s strained relations with China, fueled by disputes over Taiwan and the East China Sea, have cast doubt on future panda arrivals. The absence of pandas is anticipated to cost Japan approximately 20 billion yen ($128 million) annually in tourism and commerce, underscoring their cultural and economic significance.