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Crowds flock to Tokyo zoo to see pandas before they leave for China
The return of Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei ends a 50-year era of panda diplomacy in Japan amid diplomatic tensions; 4,400 lottery winners had one-minute viewing slots, Tokyo government said.
- On Jan 25, 2026, thousands visited Ueno Zoological Gardens for a final viewing of four-year-old giant panda twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, who will leave Japan on Tuesday, ending a decades-long presence.
- The return was announced last month after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi hinted Japan might intervene militarily if China attacked Taiwan, and prospects for a new panda loan remain uncertain amid soured ties.
- Ueno Zoo ran a competitive online lottery with 4,400 slots and 24.6 times as many applicants, while lottery winners viewed the twins for one minute and many fans queued without tickets.
- The departure will create a cultural and tourism gap with no pandas in Japan as local businesses and souvenir sellers at Ueno worry about lost business and an annual loss of about 20 billion yen, economist Katsuhiro Miyamoto said.
- China's long-standing 'panda diplomacy' frames the twins' story as Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei, born at Ueno in 2021, will undergo quarantine at a receiving facility in Sichuan Province.
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A number of admirers and took good, Sunday, from the two extreme populace pandas from the Tokyo Zoo, which are preparing to return to China, missing the archipelago of these symbolic animals for the first time in half a century, inform AFP.
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BizTocCrowds flock to Tokyo zoo to see pandas before they leave for China
The departure of four-year-old twins Xiao Xiao and Lei Lei leaves Japan panda-less for the first time since 1972, prompting thousands to apply for lottery-assigned tickets to say goodbye.
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Total News Sources33
Leaning Left7Leaning Right2Center13Last UpdatedBias Distribution59% Center
Bias Distribution
- 59% of the sources are Center
59% Center
L 32%
C 59%
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