Japan is about to repatriate its last two giant pandas to China

Tokyo [Japan], December 16: Japanese media outlets reported today, December 15th, that two pandas at a Tokyo zoo are preparing to return to China in January 2026, meaning Japan will be without pandas for the first time in half a century.
The pair of pandas were loaned to Japan by China as part of a "panda diplomacy" program and have long been a symbol of friendship between Beijing and Tokyo since the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 1972.
Japan currently has two giant pandas, twins Lei Lei (female) and Xiao Xiao (male) at Ueno Zoo. Both pandas are especially loved by the Japanese people and visitors to the zoo.
However, Lei Lei and Xiao Xiao are now preparing to return home within a month, before their official loan period ends in February 2026.
The Tokyo metropolitan government has repeatedly requested permission from China for the two pandas to remain at the zoo, but Beijing has refused, according to a source. The Tokyo Zoo declined to comment on the matter, according to AFP.
The Asahi newspaper also reported that Tokyo had made several attempts to negotiate the loan of two other pandas after Lei Lei and Xiao Xiao returned home. However, the likelihood of them arriving in Japan before Lei Lei and Xiao Xiao left was considered very low.
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated rapidly after Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made remarks implying that Tokyo might intervene militarily if Taiwan were attacked.
Ueno Zoo has long been a beneficiary of the panda diplomacy program, collaborating with facilities in China and the United States to successfully breed giant pandas. Lei Lei and Xiao Xiao, born in 2021, are the offspring of panda mother Shin Shin. Their mother came to Japan in 2011 and was returned to China last year.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper